<p>D is moving to Chicago this summer. She has decided that it might make financial sense to have a roommate - but she has no idea how to find one. She found a great roommate in a great part of town last year in Nashville on Craigslist. It seems a little scary to do that in a larger city, though.</p>
<p>Any suggestions on how she might approach the search?</p>
<p>My post college age D’s roommates were either people she knew from work or from church. Rooming with a graduate student might work out. Is there a branch of her college’s alumni network in Chicago?</p>
<p>My daughter (who, coincidentally lives in Nashville!) found a roommate in Brooklyn from FB. She was the sister of a HS classmate who was in HS band with my son. They got along very well. Kids in our our daughters age-range often have hundreds of friends living all over the US. Tell her to put the word out.</p>
<p>She has a couple friends who are in Chicago, and she is reaching out to them to see if they know anyone. In addition, her 5 year h.s. reunion is in a couple weeks, so she will put the word out there. She works for a consulting firm, and employees live all over the place … a few are in Chicago, so she is going to talk to them. </p>
<p>This is a tough move for her, because she is going in blind. She had wanted to move back to the midwest, and she wanted to move to Chicago. Suddenly, though, she is starting a 1-1/2 to 2 year project in Oakland, CA, and getting to Chicago sooner rather than later is best … she does not want to relocate to the west, and the airline schedules from Chicago are best for her needs. She considered coming home until she could find a suitable place … but the only flight options are red-eyes Thursday into Friday, and she has to work from home on Fridays. She is feeling the time crunch … Nashville lease is up 8/1, and she has vacation time arranged to allow her to move. I thought if I could at least give her a few ideas, I might feel somewhat helpful.</p>
<p>Is there any possibility of a week-by-week or one-month arrangement for herself just during August? If she could arrive in Chicago with just a suitcase and essentials, even living/renting a bedroom with one of the work colleagues, or a YWCA, she’d be better located to look for a September start. She’d be able to meet and interview roommates, understand the neighborhoods, and hear more leads. I know a double-move is hard work, but sometimes that’s the way to break in to a strange new city.</p>
<p>If she could line up something very temporary that starts August 1 for herself, she knows she can move on time. Then if she lucks out with networking in the meantime, just cancel the temporary arrangement.</p>
<p>How long a lease is she looking for? Many students want to sublet,so she could check at the universities in Chicago. My DS (who lives in Oakland now, btw) found a roommate and a replacement for him when he moved to Oakland through Craigslist, and we are in a big city. Good luck!</p>
<p>Forgot to mention- Take a look at this link and check the sites “place of mine” and “padmapper” for rentals. Many list looking for roommates. [Place</a> Of Mine Takes On Padmapper By Focusing On Collaborative House Hunting | PandoDaily](<a href=“http://pandodaily.com/2012/02/20/place-of-mine-aims-to-take-on-padmapper-by-focusing-on-collaborative-house-hunting/]Place”>http://pandodaily.com/2012/02/20/place-of-mine-aims-to-take-on-padmapper-by-focusing-on-collaborative-house-hunting/)</p>
<p>Thanks so much for the tips and ideas! I love CC. :)</p>
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<p>This was my thought also…that way, she’d be able to take time to find the right situation rather than have to make a hurried decision.</p>
<p>craigslist</p>
<p>s found what turned out to be a super townhouse share with housemates on Craigslist in the Research triangle.</p>
<p>Why does she want to move to Chicago for a new work assignment of 1 1/2 to 2 years in Oakland, CA? She could maximize her free time and cut her costs dramatically by moving to CA instead of commuting.
Before she signs a lease in Chicago, she should at least tour some options in the Bay Area…suburban like Walnut Creek or urban like San Francisco or mixed like Berkeley…there is a great range within driving/BART distance to Oakland.</p>
<p>I agree with siliconvalleymom. Parts of Oakland and Berkeley are the “hot” spot for many young adults from my community. It is the “in” spot to move after graduation.</p>
<p>She’s doing all of the right things using her contacts. Also, if she looks around the universities there, there are likely to be roommate/housemate wanted situations. That way she knows she is with someone who is a student, preferably a grad or professional school student and what they are doing. My son has set up a number of former classmates from college with people he knows who are still students in NYC and need roommates. That connection makes it a little easier than going blind with someone in a general ad. One can also often “piggyback” on college resources when living in a student ghetto even if not a student.</p>
<p>She isn’t moving to the Bay area for several reasons … the most important being money. She earns a lot for this area, but it wouldn’t go far in the Bay area. She will be home for at least a week every month (working from home) for various reasons, as well as every weekend … she has been in the south for 5 years and is looking forward to moving back to the midwest for awhile. A move across the country just isn’t where her head is right now. That is not to say that it might not happen in the future, but not now. She isn’t ready to be so far from everything she knows. She can always make a move later - leases are only a year at a time! - but she has considered her options carefully & this is the best for her now.</p>
<p>Just wanted to give an update: D found a place to live … on Craigslist. She answered the ad, talked first, then skyped. She hit it off with the two current roommates really well - they are in Teach for America. She will be living in a four bedroom house on a really cool historic street a couple blocks north of Wrigley Stadium. There are two openings, so D and another roommate will be moving in. She is breathing a huge sigh of relief to have this all in place. Thanks again for all the ideas!</p>