off campus housing

Partying Off Campus? Know The Rules

LAist just wrote up a post about Loyola Marymount University students being required to complete an orientation before being able to live off campus, which covers city ordinances and what police officer's have a right to do when they respond to a noise complaint.

This week at a forum for students to ask police and city attorneys questions, the LAPD gave the low-down on how responding officers are allowed to deal with parties "When responding to any party, officers have the discretion to do any of the following: warn and disperse the crowd, cite the responsible party giver for Disturbing the Peace and/or noise violations, file a Disturbing the Peace report with no arrest or citation given or physically arrest and then book the individual at Pacific Division."

Whether you get an orientation like LMU's or not, the lesson is that you should know your rights. Living off campus comes with a number of responsibilities and the local police are often far less forgiving than campus police. Their priority is the safety and happiness of the community they serve and they're not usually very forgiving of college students that spend only a few months in an area then leave. But there are some easy steps to take to make sure you don't ever have to deal with them.

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Make Your Off Campus House A Home

We see no reason why your off campus accommodations can't be delicious, too. This post is the third in a series of posts on off campus housing and, yes, gasp, moving beyond that university-owned bubble that is your college dorm.

Once you find off campus housing and sign that lease, the next obvious step is thinking about how to decorate it! Your new bedroom is really not that different from a dorm room, and we actually know a great website with killer decorating tips for it (hint: it's DormDelicious!) In this article, though, we'll highlight some things to think about in your house or apartment that are different from living in the dorms. We'll talk about how to take advantage of all the freedoms you get with off campus housing (as well as how to cope with the inherent risks), and what to do with all the space outside your bedroom.

Undoubtedly, while living in the dorms you noticed there was quite a lot you couldn't do when decorating. For better or worse, in an off campus house or apartment you start with a blank slate. For people who love to decorate, this is great: you can put up curtains, go on an Ikea shopping spree, (maybe) paint the walls, put up art, and so on. If you are not so decorating-inclined, fear not! We'll break it down for you.

The Bedroom: Where The Magic Happens?

Lebowski on rug... it really brings the room togetherYour bedroom might be considered your new dorm room, but let's not make it Dorm 2.0 okay? First, think about getting a bigger bed. It's time to part with those Twin XL sheets. Yes, say goodbye. They've served well under you... and on top of you I suppose. Please donate them to Goodwill or Salvation Army, though. Someone else will be able to use them! Two more key bedroom items to consider: a dresser and a desk. When shopping, don't forget our advice on getting cheap dorm room furniture. Depending on whether your room is carpeted or not, you might also consider getting a nice rug. It'll really bring the room together.

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How To Find Delicious Off Campus Housing

We see no reason why your off campus accommodations can't be delicious, too. This post is the second in a series of posts on off campus housing and, yes, gasp, moving beyond that university-owned bubble that is your college dorm.

Now that you've decided that housing off campus is right for you, we're going to dispense some advice based on our own experience looking for the perfect off campus house as well as some advice we received from folks who are following @dormdelicious on Twitter, like Kristen from Rate My Student Rental, who wrote up some great info for us. So let's get started. Before you even start thinking about housing, you must...

Learn Who Your Friends Are

Who are you going to live with? In order to know what you're in the market for you need to know how big your group is. If you're one, two, or three people you might be looking for an apartment. If your group consists of you and 10 to 15 of your closest friends you might be in the market for a house (or a subdivision). Keep in mind you will probably have less selection with larger groups, but might get a better deal and more space since you can rent an entire house.

Kristen from Rate My Student Rental offers this advice:

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Off Campus Housing: Is It Right For You?

We see no reason why your off campus accommodations can't be delicious, too. This post is the first in a series of posts on off campus housing and, yes, gasp, moving beyond that university-owned bubble that is your college dorm.

Sometimes you have no choice but to move off campus. Your university simply cannot hold you. It may be related to the Freshman 15, or it may just be that they don't have enough rooms. If you do have a choice, however, you should consider a couple things. Before you take the plunge and start searching for an off campus house or apartment, ask yourself these questions.

Can I Afford It?

When you live in the dorms, all your costs are taken care of (usually) - electricity, water, cable, Internet and gas are all rolled into one flat rate. When you're calculating what it's going to cost to live in an apartment or house don't forget to include utilities and whatever furniture you'll need to by. If you're like us, you might actually save money by moving out of the dorms, but it depends on property values around your school. Apparently we went to school in the ghetto, which was made clear every morning when we would wake up at 3AM to the blaring police sirens outside and the screech of tires in the parking lot. And then our roommate being arrested.

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