Gentry Bennett is only a freshman at Ohio University and has to live on campus for another before she can live off campus, but she is already on the search for possible houses in town for her junior year.
“I have been looking into a few places. I helped my friend that is transferring here next year find a place to live with Ohio Realty on Court Street, and in the process I was informed that students were signing for their junior year already,” Bennett said.
Thus, Bennett has begun her search as a freshman to tour the places and get an idea of what she can expect in hopes of making a decision early on in her sophomore year.
Bennett’s case is hardly rare, local landlords and property managers have said, adding many students search for an apartment or home for rent too late. They added that now is probably a great time for rising sophomores to lock in — or get as close as possible to locking in — off-campus housing for junior year.
But there are varying viewpoints on just how early students should be allowed to pen an off-campus housing deal. Some rentals allow students to sign as early as their freshmen year and others do not.
Eric Coon, the property manager at Cornwell Properties, gets regular calls from students looking to lease for the 2015-16 academic year — when today’s freshmen will be able to opt out of OU’s on-campus housing contract.
“Start early. The earlier the better,” said Coon, whose company allows freshmen who are at least 18 to sign up for future off-campus housing.
Brad Jageman, owner of Athens Ohio Rentals, does not engage in such transactions. Students must be one year away from eligibility to live off campus. Still, he echoed Coon in his advice.
“Our houses get snagged up pretty quick, so what I tell students is to sign a lease with us on the first day of their sophomore year,” Jageman said. “By signing this early it allows the student to get a house they want in the location they want.”
For example, Jageman said he has one house left for leasing for the 2014-15 academic year school year. That one house might not be a perfect fit for its next tenant, but it’s all that’s left of Jageman’s properties.
University Courtyard Athens has a similar policy for freshmen, said Kris Pyle, the complex’s property manager.
“So much could happen between their freshman and junior year that we do not allow them to make that decision that early,” Pyle said, pointing to the fact students could transfer by the time junior year comes around. She also noted rates change year to year.
A freshman can sign a lease with Best of Athens Rentals as long as he or she is 18.
“As the school year comes to a close we’re seeing more and more freshmen signing leases for our more prime locations like Court Street and Congress,” said Tiffany Mcpherson, the office manager for Best of Athens Rentals.
Bennett said she believes looking early will likely turn out to be a wise move.
“They explained to me they still had a few properties available for the 2015-2016 year, though he said in the next few months nearly all of them would be signed,” she said of dealing with Ohio Realty. “The realtor also told me high school seniors are signing for their junior year already.”
@Libby_Bradford
eb395612@ohiou.edu
