There are two main factors in deciding to own versus rent, length of stay and previous ownership. If you are looking to stay near the school for an extended period of time, say greater then 4 years, then look at owning, especially an external maintenance free unit. If you are going to school and not planning to stay afterwards, then it's better to rent, because you're out less in maintenance/overhead.
If you are like me and own a home already, then it's possible that it's more fiscally prudent to buy a house rather then taking the capital gains tax hit as long as you stay there for at least 3 years or FSBO the house at the end.
If you go down the path of ownership, do everything possible to plop down 20%, so you dont have to pay PMI. My mortgage payment is around 800/mo, all the taxes, insurance and PMI drives it to 1200/mo (half in PMI and half in taxes and insurance). Condos and town homes have some sort of fee or home owners association dues (generally yearly) thats used to cover maintenance and amenities. I have seen them as low as $100 and as high as 2 months of mortgage payments ($2800+). Not only is it important to know the current amount, but the history of raises and whether the board is planning on any future raises (or that the owner is grandfathered in on some low rate).
Lastly, check the users utilities out. Many places I looked at were nice on the exterior but had utility bills similar to my freestanding house as attached units. This is because the walls werent insulated the same way a house is and they were paying through the nose.
Condos and Apartments might be more secure, assuming they are in similar key/buzzer buildings, but I wouldnt count on that security. Gated communities are more secure, but they are (typically) much more expensive. If buying sounds good, do these three things get your credit report, apply for a loan and talk to a realtor specializing in the area(s) you want to look. The credit report and loan application will let you know price range and the realtor will (hopefully) give you insight into the area you are looking to buy. Do not sign a contract just talk about the communities, the experiences or any other questions you might have. Have them pull some listings and see if you like what they pull, if you dont or dont like the rate payment (typically between 4 and 7% of the price of the house) then either look to buy on your own or for another realtor.
