<h2>(I posted this in the Berkeley forum because I’d really like input on Berkeley specifically, but I’ve gotten no response, so I guess I’m wondering about big college towns in general)</h2>
<p>My daughter has found the perfect apartment, but the owner wants to rent it starting April 1st because his last tenant moved out unexpectedly and is obligated to pay through the end of his lease (don’t know when that is…) and the owner has pledged to do his level best to get someone in before that. It’s the right location, secure, private, beautiful, owner lives on the premises and the rent is only $25 more than we were aiming for. Her roommate plans to stay there in the summer, so the plan was to rent from June onward and try to sublet my daughter’s half during the summer.</p>
<p>Is it pretty typical to rent through the summer? What’s a good deal for a 1 BR about three blocks from campus? Should we snap it up or will plenty become available come June?</p>
<p>I think renting through the summer is pretty typical and is actually required in some cases if one gets a 12 month lease and it’s senior year for example. There’s also the competition factor of otehr renters since it’s usually first come first served. Renting in April is early though and should be avoided since it’s just more cost. </p>
<p>The landlord is doing due diligence though since they’re supposed to try to rent to reduce the loss of the lease breaker if possible. This is a good thing to have in a landlord (assuming they don’t pocket both the rent and forfeited lease money).</p>
<p>ucsd<em>ucla</em>dad, it seems I can always count on you for a thoughtful response. I appreciate it.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Exactly! I’ve gotta think he’s a stand-up guy for that. He hit it off with my daughter and her roommate and they really liked him too. I have suggested to my daughter that she appeal to his sense of fairness and ask him to weigh our plight equally with the ex-renter’s and let him pay for April and us for May, plus offer him the security deposit in April. Also, she’s looking into whether he’ll let them use his internet connection wirelessly and same for cable (which she couldn’t care much less about, but…).</p>
<p>DS had just leased a place in a shared house of 5. The place has a 9.5 walkability score and working roommates in their mid 20’s. He will be traveling in the entire month of April and he could have stayed with relatives or friends during March. He can afford the March and April payments in exchange for great roommates and housing.</p>
<p>Just be sure you have a lease that is not 12 mos and then must be renewed for 12 mos. You don’t eventually want her to worry about having to be out one year on 3/31.</p>
<p>Sometimes the apartment can be sublet for the summer months or at other times which can help offset the extra cost of the summer months. I know some people around UCLA do this. There are usually people coming in for summer sessions as international students, students from other colleges going there to do some work for their doctorates, etc. It’s worth checking with the landlord to see if they allow subletting.</p>
<p>Yes, uc dad, we’d better check on subletting. DD’s roommate is doing summer session, so it would only mean 1/2 subletting–or maybe that’s not actually considered subletting? Also, DD has two friends who want out of their current situation (one in a frat, the other month-to-month) and would be willing to pay 1/4 rent each to live there in April and May. Possibly one of them would even stick around for the summer. (Of course, it’s also possible they’re just good friends who impetuously offered to help and may back out if it becomes a reality.) </p>
<p>So it sounds like it’s maybe not insane at all?</p>
<p>DD has always had 12 month leases in Berkeley and has had great luck in getting sublettors for the summer, make sure a sublease is okay. Make sure you get the lease through May next year ;)</p>
<p>DD talked to the landlord who said getting a lease that ends after May next year is no problem. Must check out subletting as she has possible subletters for April and May. Safety is my biggest concern. To a certain extent, I think she and her roommate have their eyes open in this regard because her roommate has a night lab during summer semester, so everywhere they go her roommate is saying, “can I go here at 10:00?”, and they do talk about that. Still…it’s a concern.</p>
<p>My D and her roommates had to begin a lease in April. Sublets are officially banned but they were able to sublet for one of the roommates taking a year abroad. Fortunately, the lease is now month to month so they can stay through May of this year.</p>
<p>Our son has a great place but it was very hard to get him in as the landlord didn’t want young undergrads in the place. We spoke to the management of the property company and worked something out. He was the only tenant in the place for several months. The place is filled right now. We had a lease for a year and then the management company asked if I wanted to go Tenant-At-Will. I said fine and we did that. I spoke to them yesterday and they said that they want to do 1-year-leases now starting in June. I said that was fine and will be signing it when it arrives. This worked out nicely as we won’t have to rent the extra three months after graduation that we would have had to if we had done straight 12 month leases all the way through.</p>
<p>On apartments, always ensure that they are up to code: smoke detectors, CO2 detectors, multiple exits in an emergency, furnace in good working order (in colder climates).</p>
<p>It so depends on the market. My son is in a depressed area where he got all kinds of concessions from his landlord. In a "hot " area, that is not the case. The landlord will get what he can. This happens a lot in life. We missed out on a number of opportunities that we could not afford to take at the time they were offered. No different for an apartment rental. </p>
<p>I can tell you that friends we know are paying a huge premium for a great apartment near their son’s college, because they were late in the game, and a bidding war occurred. Though they are paying more than they want, the location and everything else is perfect, and they can afford the extra. Had they not been able to come up with the money, they would not have been able to have the luxury of paying more.</p>
<p>“Though they are paying more than they want, the location and everything else is perfect, and they can afford the extra.”</p>
<p>Real estate is all about location. In college, shaving off a few minutes every day, whether it’s to classes, the library, the gym, places to eat and laundry gives you the potential to be more efficient and those little bits of time add up over four years. Not having to go as far in the rain and snow is nice. Being able to get to your class in 1 minute instead of 15 is nice. Being able to change your books between classes is nice too.</p>