The combination of being newly graduated and trying to find a place to live can present a unique set of problems regardless of location. Credit: Lantern File Photo
In the champagne-filled, celebratory afterglow of graduation, thinking about exciting new possibilities and careers can easily be marred by stress surrounding one topic in particular: housing.
Although recently-graduated Buckeyes are going their separate ways and taking up residence both in Columbus and outside of the city, the combination of being newly graduated and trying to find a place to live can present a unique set of problems. Graduates may face issues right off the bat with housing-related expenses – such as moving, down payments and furniture – that pile up before they can access their first paychecks, Ben Raines, program coordinator for financial wellness within the Student Wellness Center, said.
“One of the challenges students face is going from college, where most students have some combination of a part-time job, maybe support from family and some financial aid, and then they go and transition oftentimes to a job, but they can’t access their wages until three weeks, two weeks, maybe four weeks after they start the job,” Raines said. “So they need to finance all of the different things that happened in-between.”
Living somewhere after graduating will likely be different from off-campus housing near Ohio State because off-campus housing is created with students in mind, Raines said. Where parents could previously cosign in case a student failed to fulfill monthly rent costs, post-grad tenants-to-be should be aware of stricter measures to ensure rent is paid, such as credit checks and income requirements.
“For those students who are supported by their family, oftentimes the end of college is when that support ends,” Raines said. “So you might not have the parent who is willing to cosign, but you don’t have much of a financial history, so that can potentially present a problem.”
Despite the seemingly daunting shift away from student housing, Raines said new graduates can avoid financial issues by budgeting well and building some credit by opening a credit card, spending very little monthly and paying off costs each month. He also suggested communicating openly with potential landlords.
Additionally, Raines said to build an all-encompassing budget, new grads should keep the cost of living in mind and build housing-related costs into their budget.
“Have a very explicit budget, including cost of utilities without the help of college roommates, debt repayment if you took out student loans, retirement accounts, cost of living,” Raines said. “Make sure your rent choice makes sense in the context of payments that will be made in every other facet of life and the cost of living in your area.”
Rachel DeMooy, program manager for Off-Campus and Commuter Student Services at Ohio State, mirrored Raines’ philosophy and said having questions in mind and communicating openly with landlords is one of the most important things when it comes to finding the right housing.
“I think the biggest tip is just be prepared,” DeMooy said. “Know what questions you want to ask, and know what you’re looking for when you’re walking into a property. Make sure that all of the doors and windows lock properly. Make sure that if a landlord says that they’re going to be replacing carpet before the next tenant moves in, then make sure you get that in the lease so it’s in writing.”
DeMooy said checking out the specific unit of interest as opposed to a model unit is the name of the game and allows a prospective tenant to check for things such as working thermostats and smoke detectors, windows that move properly, locks that are functional and the general safety of a given area.
Once a tenant is satisfied with the unit and has communicated with the landlord or management company, DeMooy and Raines both said tenants should conduct a lease review to have a lawyer ensure there is nothing hidden in a contract.
“I think if you’re still a student here and you’re signed, at least having Student Legal Services look over it’s a really good idea,” Raines said. “They can give you a sense of what is in this lease, what your obligations are, potentially things in there that are not legal or potentially are not enforceable, just to get somebody who’s an expert in real estate law to help you think through those things.”
