Where do you live in grad school?

[Borderline]

Has anyone tried to rent a house for grad school? I'm looking at it and it just looks ridiculously expensive. I found a town house for about $1400 a month, which is better, but they only allow two pets, which means we have to leave three behind. It'd be nice to have a house, but it doesn't seem feasible. Does anyone here have one?

Also, how the heck do you pay for it? PsyD programs offer no money, which makes it really hard to thing about a $1400 a month rent check.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[cmuhooligan]

Has anyone tried to rent a house for grad school? I'm looking at it and it just looks ridiculously expensive. I found a town house for about $1400 a month, which is better, but they only allow two pets, which means we have to leave three behind. It'd be nice to have a house, but it doesn't seem feasible. Does anyone here have one?

Also, how the heck do you pay for it? PsyD programs offer no money, which makes it really hard to thing about a $1400 a month rent check.

I bought a house ( with the help of my parents) when I started grad school. It was a good investment, considering that I would be in the same city for 4-5 years. Of course, this was before the financial meltdown, although it could be a really good time to buy, that is if you can get a mortgage.

 

[Borderline]

I wish my parents would help me buy a house :-/ I've been on them about it for two years, but they haven't put away any money so it isn't going to happen.

Buying a house seems like the best idea, though. But housing prices around where I'm looking would be more than my parents house anyway. <L>

 

[psybee]

we rent, as do most folks i know in the large city i live in. those without funding take out extra loans for living, and the relative cost of those loans is something to keep in mind (as in, milwaukee is a way cheaper city to live in than san francisco if you need to take out living loans or are choosing between offers with similar stipends).

 

[PsyDr]

i lived initially lived in a series of hilariously bad apartments in ridiculously areas of town where i was literally extorted for protection by homeless people in cigarettes.

after a few years i gave up and got a really nice place in highrise and was much happpier.


moral to the story: don't skimp on housing.

 

[psydd]

i've been trying to limit school choices based on whether or not they offer graduate housing. i should probably stop doing that and consider getting an apartment.

 

[blindblonde]

There is no grad housing where I currently go to grad school, so I've been living in apartments for the last couple of years. I lived by myself in the first year and I have roomies who are in the psych program this year. I like having people around, and it is cheaper to live with people.

Even though I would probably use grad housing (I'm legally blind, so driving or commuting is a bit of an issue), I've been able to manage apartment living. Talk to past grad students to figure out where you may want to consider living or avoid at all costs.

 

[rollomayfan]

I live in an on-campus apartment. If your school offers it, it can be a great option. The rent here includes all utilities, cable TV, and wireless internet, plus my "commute" involves just walking over to the psychology building.

I'd say, if you're concerned about budget and are not sure where you're going to end up once you graduate, buying a house may not always be the best option. Of course, it's likely that the housing crisis will be over in several years....but on the other hand, sometimes the money you think you're going to save by buying a house will hurt you if you need flexibility (which people in graduate school often do need). I know of a woman in our program who bought her home and will be doing internship this fall -- and she's concerned about being unable to sell before she leaves.

 

[JockNerd]

I live on my campus too, in grad student housing. I pay less now, to live alone in a big place, then when I was renting a room in a shared place with two other guys.

I find it VERY relaxing to live alone, especially after starting clinical training. Grad student housing is usually very cheap, too.

I was considering buying a 4-br 4-bath condo and renting out the other three rooms to pay mortgage/generate income, but am happy I didn't do that now since some people in my programs have lost tens of thousands on their houses in the last two-ish years.

 

[docjohng]

The best advice I could give my grad-school self is, "Buy real estate as soon as you can." I spent far too long in apartments when I could've been building equity in real estate (not to mention the tax breaks you get with the IRS for owning rather than renting).

I know this isn't always practical (especially in your first year), but by year 2 or 3, you should seriously see if you can purchase a condo in your area. Chances are that by the time you are ready to go on internship, you'll have some equity in it and make a profit if you need to sell it. (Well, in the previous up-market... this current market seems a bit more pessimistic.)

John

 

[JockNerd]

I know this isn't always practical (especially in your first year), but by year 2 or 3, you should seriously see if you can purchase a condo in your area. Chances are that by the time you are ready to go on internship, you'll have some equity in it and make a profit if you need to sell it. (Well, in the previous up-market... this current market seems a bit more pessimistic.)

"Chances are."

I reiterate: I am glad that I did not buy a condo because those around me lost tens of thousands on their purchased homes.

If you're a grad student making $18000 a year, maybe you should look at not buying a house. It's sort of exactly the kind of thing that caused all this trouble.