After my first two years of living in an on campus dorm, I decided it was time to strike out on my own and move into an apartment off campus. Why an off-campus apartment when we have such lovely accommodations available here on UB North? Mostly because even though UB has been throwing up apartment complexes faster than Lou Perlman can throw together boy bands, there were no more units available at the time and I was told I would be put on a waiting list.
A waiting list. Great. Since I wasn't too thrilled about waiting to see if maybe I'd have to rent out one of the carrels in Lockwood library to live in, I opted to look around the neighborhood for other alternatives. I found a nice little place about five minutes away and ended up saving money on rent, even though I had to buy my own furniture (plastic crates - Walmart, $5) and pay my own utility bills (wool sweater - Salvation Army, $2; newspaper stuffing - Spectrum Office, $0).
I haven't once regretted my decision to move off campus. I really enjoy listening to my friends talk about their plans to sell their first-born children to pharmaceutical companies in order to pay off the debt they've accumulated by paying their rent with a credit card. Someone from Visa is vacationing in Fiji right now, after purchasing the island and its surrounding waters with college students' interest payments. His name is Satan, and he's hosting a beach party this weekend with Mephisto from MasterCard and Baal from American Express. Those of you who aren't dorks won't get that one, so suffice to say that they are all Evil Beings.
Realistically, though, you could rent an entire house in University Heights for what it costs one person to live in the on-campus apartments for one month. Even if you don't want to dodge bullets on your way to the mailbox, you can still save money by living in some of the neighborhoods near North Campus.
Based on the university apartment rates ranging from $430 to $572 per person per month*, and my own rent of $342 (total rent $625 plus average utility cost at $60 per month, of which I pay half), I save anywhere from $1,050 to $2,754 each year by living off campus. Before you try skipping out on your lease, let me qualify those figures.
I estimated utilities at $60 per month because in the summer they amount to almost nothing (under $25) and in the winter they can be as high as $100 per month. This does not include cable or laundry, because there are ways of getting around those expenses. Let's assume though, conservatively, that I pay the deadbeats at Adelphia half of $40 to $50 per month because my roommate and I must watch South Park, and that I do approximately 1.5 loads of laundry per week at $1.50 per load. That's $357 to $417 a year, and I'm still saving by living in what is not nearly the cheapest place off campus.
By the way, I only share my apartment with one other person, and it's at least as large as any of the four-person units I've seen on campus. It's also only about five minutes from North Campus, and has free off street parking that I never have to worry about there being enough of. Sure, I can't keep my place at 90 degrees in January and I turn off the lights when I leave, but the neighbors are quiet, I have wall-to-wall carpeting (not the turf you'll find on campus) and a nice little patio. Incidentally, if any of the wonderful, kind, good-looking people from Colonie Apartments management come across this column, the name is Lynn Carter, and did I mention you smell nice?
The bottom line is whether avoiding the responsibilities of the real world for a little longer is worth more to you than a couple grand and a little extra comfort each year. In my opinion, it is not. You get what you pay for, and I think the University has done a good job of providing quality housing at competitive rates, appropriate for students who don't want to have to buy their own furniture or worry about taking it with them or getting rid of it when they leave.
Things like the energy crisis in California and the shortage of petroleum that will soon be upon us all make me wonder if UB couldn't require students to pay for their utilities separately, however. Doing so might save students some cash as well, because they would be able to control and minimize a part of their living expenses every month. I'm sure that there are those of us to whom running around in shorts and a tank top all year with three other slobs is worth the extra expense, though, and to each his own.
*Source: University Student Affairs Residence Halls & Apartments website, 11/19/02
Taxes included in all off-campus estimates, see university information for on-campus accommodation tax details.
