Shopping Tips for Athens Ohio Apartments
Shopping for Athens Ohio Apartments often seems to require lots of lists, trips around the neighborhoods, and making big decisions. You can always find a roommate who has already accomplished these goals or is willing to hand you a list of the top three. Since life isn’t always like that, we came up with some tips for the experience.
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Determine Affordability
Taking the time to update and polish your personal budget before you start trying to find Athens Ohio Apartments. This can help you figure out your price range. It can also identify areas in your finances where you can cut back to spend more on a pricier apartment. The U.S. census bureau suggests that your monthly rent should not exceed 20% of your monthly income – 30% at the most. For instance, if you bring home $4,000 each month, you should cap your search at around $1,200. You can also factor roommates into this. After scrutinizing the numbers, you may decide to drop that costly TV subscription to allow you more wiggle room in your budget for the right place.
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Lower Rental Costs For Athens Ohio Apartments
There are several things you can do to find a lower monthly rent when trying to find an apartment:
- Look Outside an Urban Area. While living in the city center near Ohio University may seem like a priority, it doesn’t mean much if you can’t afford the rent. Instead, check out apartments in the suburbs within a conveniently commutable distance to work.
- Consider Transportation Costs. Urban areas generally require a smaller transportation budget, since you can likely take public buses or subways to get around. However, you still need to take transportation costs into consideration, whether it’s a bus pass or gas money, if you choose to live away from the city center. You might want to find an apartments that has parking as well.
- Get a Roommate. You can slash the price of any apartment in half simply by sharing it with someone. You need a landlord’s approval before doing so, but having a roommate can significantly reduce the financial pressures of renting. Just make sure you have a written agreement with your roommate laying out all obligations.
- Think Small. Square footage comes at a premium in an apartment, particularly in the number of rooms. Going for a studio or one-bedroom apartment may mean missing out on some space, but you make up for it with big month-to-month savings. Assess how much space you really need based on your lifestyle, visitors, pets, and storage. You may find that you’re happier paying less for a smaller place when you’re trying to nail down a place to live.
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Add Renters Insurance
For some, renters insurance is a choice, but for the vast majority, it’s required by a landlord. In either case, you should add it to your budget. It covers losses if you suffer a break-in, and it also helps cover your landlord if you damage the property. A landlord insures the building, but renters insurance covers what’s actually inside it.
Luckily, it’s pretty affordable. Rates depend on geographical location, amount of coverage, and amount of rent paid, but, on average, you can expect to pay around $500 per year on $25,000 worth of coverage – about $12 to $15 per month. When you are trying to find a rental property you might want to see if insurance is something that you are interested in.
