Grad Student Stipend and Rental Applications???

[ACM88]

Hi all,

 

I've been in the market for an apartment in my soon-to-be new city (New Haven, CT) and hit me just recently: my graduate student stipend might not be large enough for an apartment complex to feel comfortable renting a unit out to me. I've done the math and for the area I'm looking to rent in, I'll have enough money to afford everything, but my monthly income definitely won't amount to 3-4 times the rent. I have a good rental history (2 years at the same place) and a decent credit score, but I worry about income level requirements or expectations. Has this been an issue for others? I haven't yet applied for an apartment, but I have found one that is perfect and now I'm worried I'll get shut down because I won't make "enough".

 

The area services a large graduate student community, so I think I have that going for me, but the cost of living in the region is relatively high and even though the stipends are good, they're definitely only enough to just get by on. It would be nice to know what my odds are going into the process so that I don't get my heart broken.

 

Let me know what you think! And thanks in advance for the advice!

 

 

[ANDS!]

No.  All you have to do is explain the situation, and/or show them your award letter.  Rentals care less about the "3-4" rule (that is hardly binding) and more about "Is this person going to bail. . ."  

[TakeruK]

Agree with ANDS!, I hadn't heard about the "3 times the rent rule" until I started looking for apartments down in the states! My monthly income is not even "twice the rent", but the building still rented to me. Even without any US credit history too (I did provide them with a copy of my Canadian credit history -- the building manager said it would help but I'm not sure if it was actually necessary to get us our place!). I think having a strict "3 times the rent rule" is actually illegal in some places, but obviously the building manager/landlord can easily make up some other excuse to not rent to you. Like ANDS! said, they only care that you would actually be able to make your rent commitment and that you are reliable enough to not suddenly disappear before your lease is up (and thus cause them the trouble of hunting you down to get their money). Being a grad student, especially in an academic town, will probably help! 

 

If you can get a letter that says your total amount of financial support though, including the value of your tuition waiver, then it might be even better!

[TeaGirl]

I had a similar issue where my grad student stipend wasn't enough to cover the required annual salary in the rent contract, but showing them I had enough money saved in the bank to cover the difference for a year was fine.

[ACM88]

No.  All you have to do is explain the situation, and/or show them your award letter.  Rentals care less about the "3-4" rule (that is hardly binding) and more about "Is this person going to bail. . ."  

 

 

Agree with ANDS!, I hadn't heard about the "3 times the rent rule" until I started looking for apartments down in the states! My monthly income is not even "twice the rent", but the building still rented to me. Even without any US credit history too (I did provide them with a copy of my Canadian credit history -- the building manager said it would help but I'm not sure if it was actually necessary to get us our place!). I think having a strict "3 times the rent rule" is actually illegal in some places, but obviously the building manager/landlord can easily make up some other excuse to not rent to you. Like ANDS! said, they only care that you would actually be able to make your rent commitment and that you are reliable enough to not suddenly disappear before your lease is up (and thus cause them the trouble of hunting you down to get their money). Being a grad student, especially in an academic town, will probably help! 

 

If you can get a letter that says your total amount of financial support though, including the value of your tuition waiver, then it might be even better!

 

This is all such a relief! I was starting to work myself up, so I'm glad to know that given my academic finances, I should still be able to rent an apartment. Also, in the event that my stipend amount isn't quite what they would hope for, I'm planning to let them know that I intend to take out student loans to cover the difference it unexpected financial situations arise. Now all I have to really worry about is saving up enough money for a down payment/security deposit. *sigh*

 

Thanks so much for your replies! I definitely feel better about this whole process now.

[msmith1990]

If you have any family members who'd be willing to, co-signing is also an option. Every building I've talked to has said that they'll take a co-signer in lieu of proven income. I hope never to have my parents pay anything, but they're willing to co-sign for me to make the building feel better.

[sociologo]

I had this issue in August when I moved for school. I ended up having to show them a finaid award letter that included the amount of loans I was eligible to take out. Seems stupid because I didn't end up taking the loans out, but I guess they just wanted me to jump through some hoops. 

[PsychGirl1]

Where I'm moving, they are quite strict about the income rules. I had to have both my parents apply for the apartment along with me... and my stipend is quite high compared to other schools. I also needed to bring my offer letter and about 100 pounds of other things. It was actually fairly insane. The other cities I've lived in have been strict about the rule as well.

 

If this isn't an option and where you're moving is strict about this, then you'd probably be best renting a room in a group apartment.

[Swagato]

OP: I'm moving to New Haven as well. Recently visited to see some apartments, and I've spoken to representatives of most of the major leasing companies near the downtown area. They all commented that the award letter would do just fine.

[lypiphera]

I have done this twice and used methods others have mentioned.  The first time, I had my parents sign as a guarantor, which was an option in my lease if you don't make 3x the rent.  The second time, didn't have a job yet and my husband's job wasn't even close to 3x, so I gave them a copy of my bank statement to show that I had enough money to support us until I found a job.

 

If neither of those two are an option, I would just show the complex your budget, proving you have enough to pay for rent and living each month, and hope your credit is good enough that they are satisfied.  If a place still isn't satisfied after that, they are probably only want "higher-class" people there, and you'd be better off finding another place that isn't snobby.

[Arrowfletch]

If a place is known to rent to students, I wouldn't think it would be an issue.  The places I'm looking at now will cost me just under half of my monthly stipend, and while I have not specifically asked yet, they know I am a student on a stipend and have made no mention of income requirements.  In fact, one place wanted to show me apartments that are more expensive than what I'm looking for.  If it does become an issue, my parents would happily co-sign, but I'm not expecting anyone to make a fuss at complexes that advertise and rent to students who wouldn't be expected to have much income.

[ACM88]

I gave the property office a call this morning, to get an idea of what the process will be when I am in town and ready to fill out an application. They let me know that the security deposit is one month's rent with an application fee, which is very reasonable. I then asked if I would need to bring anything with me to complete the application or show them my background, and they said no! No paystubs, no offer letter, no nothing! I found that strange.

 

But it reminded me of something else I'm curious about. From your experience, when apartments do a credit check, how much do they focus on your credit card history relative to your rental history? I have great rental history and have always made all of my credit payments on time, but I don't always completely pay off my credit card charges the next month. I tend to have some carry over credit card debt, but for both of my cards it's less than 50% of the credit line (graduate student income hasn't really let me take care of them the way I would like). Do you think this will really matter? I just want to have all of my bases covered!

[rising_star]

I haven't rented from big companies very often, but I recently did so with a spotty rental history and credit background (was living outside the USA for a while so my cards were open but not being used and there was no real way for them to call my last landlord). Since they rented to me anyway, I'm guessing that they were going on the fact that I was upfront with them about the spotty recent history (the VP of the company told me he appreciated my openness and honesty, which he said lowered rather than raised red flags) and that my record of paying is very good. Not sure how much this info helps but, you can always ask the company directly how your credit history affects your application.

[Swagato]

OP: Just wanted to post an update to the effect that our rental application was approved without hesitation, despite my not-excellent credit score. As I said, I would not worry at all as long as you're applying to an entity that is familiar with renting out to graduate students. 

[imonedaful]

If you have any family members who'd be willing to, co-signing is also an option. Every building I've talked to has said that they'll take a co-signer in lieu of proven income. I hope never to have my parents pay anything, but they're willing to co-sign for me to make the building feel better.

 

This is probably the easiest option. If a family member is helping you move, just ask them to cosign. I have done this before when moving. However, if not a good rental history can go a long way. Getting a reference from your last residence will help. 

[ACM88]

Thanks a lot for the advice. I went in and filled out the application for the apartment I wanted and it was no problem at all! I was actually really surprised; they didn't even ask me to provide proof of employment or recent pay stubs. It was remarkably light. I hope that speaks more to their familiarity with graduate student tenants and not to their having low standards!

 

Again, thank you all for the input. It definitely calmed me down before I went in.

[Swagato]

Congratulations. Did you end up in East Rock?

[PsychGirl1]

Haha totally different from my experience. I had to have both my parents co-sign, and they had to go there in person with tax returns, their social security cards, a money order, ID, etc. Then I also had to go with the same things (tax return, social security card, check, ID, my offer letter, my current pay stubs) and complete additional paperwork. My mother said it required more documents and paperwork than getitng a mortgage on a house. They also had a 4x income rule.

 

When I lived in Boston, it was less of a hassle, but they had a 3-4x income rule, so I had to get my parents to co-sign since as a RC I wasn't making enough money.

[ACM88]

Congratulations. Did you end up in East Rock?

 

I did end up in East Rock, which is a huge relief. Everyone I knew in the area (read: my future lab mates) all recommended it, so I had every intention of being in that area (even if it does mean I pay a bit extra for my digs compared to other places in New Haven). I'm really happy with my decision though. Have you found a place in New Haven?

[Swagato]

Yeah, downtown. Dwight Street, just two blocks west of the main campus. I'm told it's fairly close to the western edge of the Yale bubble, but reasonable common-sense should see us safe. The plan is to move to East Rock during the dissertation years.

Edited May 18, 2013 by Swagato

[KindaHardWorker]

I would also add that if you're looking for a roommate or general advice on the area you're moving too, check out the specific section on Reddit.com .  It has given me three or four leads right off the bat for potential roommates.