OPINION: As the time to figure out housing for the next year draws closer, more and more people are faced with the choice between staying on campus or moving to an apartment (or even a more permanent housing arrangement). A lot of students tend to lean towards off-campus housing for a variety of reasons. I’m one of the rare upperclassmen who lived on campus while a lot of friends moved off-campus. I don’t regret my choice, and I think blindly rushing into a lease with a complex like the Ave or the Reserve is a mistake that a lot of students make without considering all the options.
One of the primary reasons people move to a complex is for financial reasons. To some people, it is cheaper to live off-campus in the long run. However, I don’t think a lot of students properly crunch the numbers. They forget to account for things like utilities which can pile up quite quickly at a complex where you have multiple roommates whose utilities usage you cannot control. There’s also financial advantages to on-campus room and board. One advantage is the option to use scholarships/financial aid to pay. Another is that the threat of missing a payment is significantly less serious on-campus. The Ave can evict you for missing a rent payment, while the university will add a late fee and maybe send a strongly-worded email.
The university is also held more accountable to you for living conditions. There are stricter housing regulations for a public university than there are in a private complex. The university can’t ignore your maintenance request. It may take a few days but ultimately they’re liable for responding to every request. On-Campus housing is subject to all the same rules that off-campus housing is, and then some.
There’s also the social benefit to living on-campus. It’s significantly easier to take part in clubs when you’re not already off-campus by five p.m. It’s easier to hang out with friends when they’re also on-campus. It’s easier to get to classes when you don’t have to drive to campus at eight a.m. and risk not getting a parking spot at all. As a member of multiple clubs, I don’t think I’d be nearly as involved if I lived off campus.
My last problem with the complexes is that their marketing is predatory. They advertise as early as October that you must sign a lease as soon as possible, but don’t tell you that you can likely still sign a lease way later in the year. They create anticipation and hype up the first lease signing period so that you feel pressured into signing without properly considering your options.
These complexes love to use peer pressure marketing. Don’t fall for it. Make informed decisions. Living off-campus can be a great and worthwhile experience for many students. I simply encourage you to consider all the implications of the options. Don’t automatically assume it will be better for you to live off campus because someone else said it was better for them.
