Finding Housing Out of State

[DeWi]

I have decided to attend a program out of state, but I am now worried about housing. It's unlikely that I will be able to visit the area to look at housing until the program orientation in May/June, but this worries me because I know most leases for next year are already signed, and the town I'll be moving to is not a large one. All my anxieties about getting in have been transferred to worrying about finding somewhere to live haha. Is anyone else already looking into housing, or are you waiting? How are you handling this as an out of state applicant?

[Lunalulu2]

I am still undecided but have been researching places. In one of my top locations I emailed some local rental management companies and asked when the best time would be to look for housing for August and they said late June. This is in a smallish town with a fair number of students. I would suggest emailing some people in the area.  Does the program start in summer or fall? May or June may be fine if it's for the fall 

Edited March 15, 2016 by Lunalulu2

[DeWi]

It starts in fall, so I was definitely hoping May/June would be fine. I had emailed one of the local management companies about the best time, and they suggested signing a lease in April!! That definitely freaked me out. I am hoping the fact that I am looking for a 1BR will be an advantage and be available later in the summer because most people live with roommates, but I just can't help but worry.

[Lunalulu2]

Wow! I am sure every market is different but that seems really early. Are there a lot of listings for August already posted online? 

[DeWi]

I'm not sure that I've seen any listings for August. Most of the leases seem to begin in May/June, which is annoying on its own because I don't plan on moving out there until August. I've come across maybe seven listings that will work for me for the 2016-2017 year, but of course I don't know how many other grad students will be looking at those same listings. Ugh. Its like every time I think I can stop stressing, I find something new to stress over!

[Lunalulu2]

I would try checking with someone else, is there another management company you can ask? Maybe try asking someone from the school?  If there aren't a lot of listings for August showing up soon then I doubt April is really necessary.

I agree about the stress. All of this has been crazy stressful and I am still undecided about where I want to go.  I do find it reassuring that on blogs etc I have seen multiple SLP grad students or graduates say that the application and pre grad school time was the most stressful part. 

[DeWi]

Yeah, I'm definitely thinking reaching out to the school is a good course of action. I can't possibly be the first person with this problem lol. Wishing you the best with your decision making...you have a lot of options!!

[caterpillar]

When we moved to AR, I emailed a ton of rental agencies in the April prior and gathered a list of people who said they'd accept student loans as income. Then in June, I went back through all their listings, found a place that was for rent about a month out, and applied for it. We were lucky that they were willing to hold the unit for us without charging rent until August 1st, and all the lease signing/application was able to be done online. It worked out pretty well with a little bit of prep work in advance.