Housing for Univ of MD students!?

[premed2]

Hey...I'm gonna be at Univ of MD next year and I can't find affordable housing anywhere. Everything nearby is $1000 - $1300 a month for a 1 BR!! Any current students in Baltimore...help would be appreciated! The new on campus housing is really nice, but also really expensive....

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[ckent]

1000-1300 is the price of single luxury apartments in the area (redwood, marlbro, etc). If you get a roomate, you can get a 2 bedroom for anywhere from 600-800 per month. A lot of students also live in Ridgely delight, where they have townhomes. There you can get a townhouse with a couple of friends for 300-400 a month each. However, be forewarned that if you park your car there, you can expect to have it broken into ~once per year, and some of my classmates have been mugged, one in a group at gunpoint, while others have had no problems at all, so it is associated with some amount of risk. Most students don't live in the BSU, but some live in pascault row where you can get a single efficiency for ~ 700 per month. That's a little overpriced considering that most of their apartments are cochroach infested, but you also get cheap, relatively safe student parking if you live there (~50/month). Parking if you live at one of the luxury apartments will set you back another 100 per month. Also, be sure to check out the housing website at http://www.housing.umaryland.edu .

 

[kaos]

I've never seen a single roach at my place at Pascault. 😛

 

[labangel]

Try to look around at the places with studios, you can find a place for 800-900, some with utilities included. I didn't want to have a roommate and I'm doing fine on the ~ $15000 you get per year. It's all about budgeting and learning to live with what you can afford. Check out the Marlboro, Atrium, Inner Harbor Lofts, and some other places that are a little farther away. It's doable, but you may need to get your name on a wait list since most people in the area move out and in around July and August. The cheapest studios go fast.

 

[bjolly]

Damn, they are ripping people off downtown. If you're going to have a car, start looking outside the downtown area----there is nice housing MUCH cheaper to be had in Baltimore. Skip the luxury complexes; check the Baltimore Sun's rental ads and get an apt in someone's house for $600-700.

take it from a native Baltimorean, who owns a 3 bedroom home in a quiet neighborhood 20 min from downtown---with a mortgage of only $700 a month.

 

[Mirror Form]

Living outside of the city isn't a bad idea, but be forwarned that a lot of people who commute into school end up disliking it and moving into the city later. For one thing baltimore traffic is horrendous, and also if you want to go out on the weekends it's pretty annoying to drive home and then drive back into the city. I lived in the BSU freshman year and that was alright, but it's getting torn down next year. Pascault row is okay but probably overpriced for what you get. Sail Clothe has good prices on studio apt's (700), but then you have to pay another 100 for parking. You can save a lot of money and get a nice place by finding a roommate.

Currently there is a big new apartment building being built by umaryland right now which is supposed to be open in time for next year. I'd definitely recommend that since it'll be below market rates and sounds awesome (check out http://www.umaryland.edu/oea/news/2003/030311-residence-ef.htm and http://www.fayettesquare.com/). I've been watching it be built outside my window and they seem to be making good progess (especially at 6am).

 

[Mirror Form]

oh yeah, you can search for roommates and check out more housing info here:
http://www.housing.umaryland.edu/

 

[Rapid Decomposition]

Originally posted by Sledge2005
baltimore traffic is horrendous

Hardly. It's only kind of crappy downtown. Freeway traffic tends to move pretty well even during the busy times (except the beltway - that truly is horrendous, but no one should have to go out that far) and the surface streets aren't bad at all (as long as you're smart enough to not use Charles St like everyone else in Baltimore). You can get from north Baltimore to downtown in 15 minutes pretty easily. I'm considering buying a place and living up there next year - safer, prettier, CHEAPER (I have trouble paying 200K for a cramped rowhouse in a semi-sketchy area when the same amount buys a nice 4 bedroom house in Homeland - you know?). It may be worth the extra gas and time, plus I have to drive up there 3 times a week as it is.

 

[Mirror Form]

Originally posted by Rapid Decomposition
Hardly. It's only kind of crappy downtown. Freeway traffic tends to move pretty well even during the busy times (except the beltway - that truly is horrendous, but no one should have to go out that far) and the surface streets aren't bad at all (as long as you're smart enough to not use Charles St like everyone else in Baltimore). You can get from north Baltimore to downtown in 15 minutes pretty easily. I'm considering buying a place and living up there next year - safer, prettier, CHEAPER (I have trouble paying 200K for a cramped rowhouse in a semi-sketchy area when the same amount buys a nice 4 bedroom house in Homeland - you know?). It may be worth the extra gas and time, plus I have to drive up there 3 times a week as it is.

You must have a really good secret commuter route b/c that's the first time I've heard someone refer to downtown traffic here as only kind of crappy. The downtown traffic is completely crappy during rush hour, and yes I've done plenty of driving in DC, NJ, and NYC before. Baltimore drivers are some of the worst you'll find anywhere (in terms of manners and skill), plus the roads are still destroyed from the snowstorms so unless you have an SUV it can feel like you're offroading on a lot of streets (isn't too good for your car). I don't know what highway you're talking about moving well either, they're all very slow at rush hour and getting to them is even worse (except 95 south on good days). Plus living outside the city really puts a damper on your social life b/c there's no decent metro or anything of that sort.

 

[Mirror Form]

I just checked your profile and saw that you go to hopkins, that explains a lot. Hopkins isn't as close to downtown baltimore as UMB is so the roads and traffic aren't as bad during rush hour.

 

[labangel]

I agree with Sledge2005 about putting a damper on your social life. If you're an older student and/or have a family, living outside of the city is probably your best bet. For the more traditional age students living downtown is really the better way to go. There is something to be said for it being easier to meet people that way, especially when you have no family around. I know lots of people who chose to live outside of the city for MSI and then moved closer the following year. It really is a hassle to drive, especially when it's snowing/raining and you have to be here at 8am for an exam...you don't want to be stressed before you even get here

 

[Rapid Decomposition]

Originally posted by Sledge2005
You must have a really good secret commuter route b/c that's the first time I've heard someone refer to downtown traffic here as only kind of crappy. The downtown traffic is completely crappy during rush hour, and yes I've done plenty of driving in DC, NJ, and NYC before. Baltimore drivers are some of the worst you'll find anywhere (in terms of manners and skill), plus the roads are still destroyed from the snowstorms so unless you have an SUV it can feel like you're offroading on a lot of streets (isn't too good for your car). I don't know what highway you're talking about moving well either, they're all very slow at rush hour and getting to them is even worse (except 95 south on good days). Plus living outside the city really puts a damper on your social life b/c there's no decent metro or anything of that sort.

Well, I went to college in LA, and compared to southern California the traffic in Baltimore is nothin'. In fact most of the west coast cities, (I guess) because they lack good public transportation, have very severe traffic problems during rush hour. So I guess I'm biased. In Baltimore, traffic can be annoying during rush hour because there are so many cars, and yes the drivers suck and the roads are awful, but the key is that the traffic still moves at a reasonable pace, even on the freeways (specifically, I'm thinking of JFX and 295. JFX can be crowded sometimes and go a little slowly, but you can still get to Northern Parkway in 8-10 min). But I guess compared to east coast cities that have better public transport, like DC, Boston, NYC, the commuter problems could be worse - I couldn't say since I have very little experience driving in these cities. So what I'm saying is that traffic isn't a good reason, for me personally, to avoid having to commute. And you're right, the fact that I don't go to school downtown is definitely better in that regard.

I definitely agree with the damper it can put on your social life, though.