Category Archives: Renting

Apartments, Roommates, Landlords: Finding Housing after BMC Panel Recap

At our most recent Life After Bryn Mawr event on April 10th, members of the Life After Bryn Mawr Committee (Rachel Heiser, Jancy Munguia ’14 and Palak Bhandari ’16) and Cruz Arroyo, Administrative Assistant in LILAC, discussed the basics of navigating housing after Bryn Mawr.

For those of you that may have missed this session, we will be planning to hold a second session during Senior Week 2017. Below is a compilation of some of the important takeaways from this session.

Key People to know about when finding housing

When finding housing, it is important to know the different people you may come into contact with throughout the search process and while you are renting a property.

Realtor – Essentially the person that helps to generate interest in a property and connects two parties; after finding housing, you may not interact with a realtor as frequently, if at all.

Landlord/Property Manager – The person who arranges the lease agreement, takes care of daily needs at the property and is the go-to person for maintenance needs

Property Owner – The person who actually owns the building and land that the property is on.

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Housing: Finding the Right Fit

Housing: Finding the Right Fit

  • How to figure out who you’re living with – think about:
    • community?
    • new city?
    • tryna meet non-BMC people?
    • Use your resources: alumnae networks! Events, facebook, word of mouth
  • Finding the apartment
    • Budget – ⅓ of income (factor in tax! fed withholding?)
    • How to find a place?
    •  Think about the details :
      • Location (proximity to groceries, drugstores, public transportation)
      • Safety (neighborhood and building)
      • Amenities (dishwasher? laundry in building? WiFi? Cable? Parking?)
      • Commute
      • Use Walk Score to compare locations/safety
      • Management? (individual, realty company, etc. Google your company if you have one!)
  • Nawar Naseer ’14 created a great spreadsheet that we’ve adapted for you to use – check it out here!
  • Have an apartment hunting buddy! (If you can, someone who’s done this before in case it’s shady/so you know what to ask)
  • Factors to consider – location re public transit, groceries, etc, safety.
  • You found a place!
    • Read your lease. But actually.
    • Landlord politics/Know your rights in case of:
      • Breaking lease
      • Building maintenance problems (minor–small repairs)
      • Building maintenance and safety problems (major issues like gas leaks)
      • Noise policies
      • Insect extermination policies (know who pays and what the terms are if you get bed bugs).
      • Once you find it – furniture, utilities.

Extra Resources