Kacie and I are getting married in August. Post wedding we had two main options: Become homeless or find a place to live.
After some discussion, we decided to go with the second option and started the apartment shopping process. I actually started this several months before we were engaged because I had no idea what I was looking for. I am 22 years old but have never actually lived on my own. In high
school I lived with my parents and in college an on campus dorm was the most convenient option.
If you don't already know, there are three main classes of middle class apartments: Studio, one bedroom, and two bedroom. The second two are self explanatory. A studio is the only option that bears explanation. Studio apartments are basically a bedroom, kitchen, living room all rolled into one. A good friend of mine and his wife did this for almost two years. If you don't mind feeling a little cramped, it can be a nice cheaper option.
In my male mind, I considered this to be a reasonable option and looked into it. Kacie did not. I stopped looking into it.
The first thing that caught me off guard was the difference in pricing. A nice two bedroom apartment in Sioux Falls, SD would be around $500 - $700 a month. When I started looking around for apartments I was very surprised to find that a nicer one bedroom in the Twin Cities could be anywhere from $700 - $1,000 a month. My very first tip to anyone looking for an apartment would be to ask people who live in the same city as you do. Call me naive, but it didn't occur to me that the housing market could be that drastically different in two places less than a four hour drive apart.
After we had found a few apartments we drove around to a few of them to see if we could get tours. That was another mistake: some places are willing to take prospective renters on a tour spur of the moment, but most won't. You get a much more friendly reception and more information if you call ahead and have an appointment. It saves you time. It saves them time. Everyone is happy.
Taking a tour is a faster way to gain information than digging through a website. Also, websites can be out of date or plain wrong. It's often more efficient to simply talk to a building manager and get the details first hand.
I cannot recommend going to the location you are thinking of renting strongly enough. Most apartment complexes have fancy websites with pretty pictures, but this is very easy to do. With clever angles or a little photoshopping, you can make almost any complex look upscale. Only by actually going there and touring an apartment will you get an accurate idea of what it looks like.
Another good idea to do before you take a tour is to use google maps and street view. It may sound a little creepy, but it's good to use these two features to get a better idea of what's around the complex. It can also give you a good idea of things you want to check while you're down in the area. For instance, when Kacie and I were looking at touring one complex, they told us they had secured parking and a nice location. When we arrived for our tour, we discovered that "secured parking" was a parking lot and there was a truck depot right next door (Not to mention a high way overpass that had a sign on it "Buy and sell illegal drugs here").
We are still in the apartment searching process and are also looking at on campus housing as an option. Kacie will be in school for a few years after I graduate and it would be convenient to be closer. University sponsored apartments often have utilities or internet included in the rent, which can make things better. Another plus for me is that "the real world hasn't come yet" feeling.
After some discussion, we decided to go with the second option and started the apartment shopping process. I actually started this several months before we were engaged because I had no idea what I was looking for. I am 22 years old but have never actually lived on my own. In high
school I lived with my parents and in college an on campus dorm was the most convenient option.
If you don't already know, there are three main classes of middle class apartments: Studio, one bedroom, and two bedroom. The second two are self explanatory. A studio is the only option that bears explanation. Studio apartments are basically a bedroom, kitchen, living room all rolled into one. A good friend of mine and his wife did this for almost two years. If you don't mind feeling a little cramped, it can be a nice cheaper option.
In my male mind, I considered this to be a reasonable option and looked into it. Kacie did not. I stopped looking into it.
The first thing that caught me off guard was the difference in pricing. A nice two bedroom apartment in Sioux Falls, SD would be around $500 - $700 a month. When I started looking around for apartments I was very surprised to find that a nicer one bedroom in the Twin Cities could be anywhere from $700 - $1,000 a month. My very first tip to anyone looking for an apartment would be to ask people who live in the same city as you do. Call me naive, but it didn't occur to me that the housing market could be that drastically different in two places less than a four hour drive apart.
After we had found a few apartments we drove around to a few of them to see if we could get tours. That was another mistake: some places are willing to take prospective renters on a tour spur of the moment, but most won't. You get a much more friendly reception and more information if you call ahead and have an appointment. It saves you time. It saves them time. Everyone is happy.
Taking a tour is a faster way to gain information than digging through a website. Also, websites can be out of date or plain wrong. It's often more efficient to simply talk to a building manager and get the details first hand.
I cannot recommend going to the location you are thinking of renting strongly enough. Most apartment complexes have fancy websites with pretty pictures, but this is very easy to do. With clever angles or a little photoshopping, you can make almost any complex look upscale. Only by actually going there and touring an apartment will you get an accurate idea of what it looks like.
Another good idea to do before you take a tour is to use google maps and street view. It may sound a little creepy, but it's good to use these two features to get a better idea of what's around the complex. It can also give you a good idea of things you want to check while you're down in the area. For instance, when Kacie and I were looking at touring one complex, they told us they had secured parking and a nice location. When we arrived for our tour, we discovered that "secured parking" was a parking lot and there was a truck depot right next door (Not to mention a high way overpass that had a sign on it "Buy and sell illegal drugs here").
We are still in the apartment searching process and are also looking at on campus housing as an option. Kacie will be in school for a few years after I graduate and it would be convenient to be closer. University sponsored apartments often have utilities or internet included in the rent, which can make things better. Another plus for me is that "the real world hasn't come yet" feeling.
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