Ditch the Dorm and Find a New Niche In New York

Cohabitation with your collegiate peers is flat-out stressful. At first, this sort of life can be exciting. Living with friends and peers - people whose company you actually enjoy - and experiencing the freedom to do almost anything can be intoxicating.

The newness of this freedom will stay with you forever. However, sharing a bathroom, kitchen and general living spaces with people who you don't know too well and whose general cleaning habits may be less than stellar, will get old - fast. This is where apartments should be considered as an alternative to dorming.

Roughly 1,600 live in the residence halls. If you have the luxury of living close to home, moving back in with Mom and Pop may be an option. However, if you don't live within commuting distance or simply can't imagine living at home ever again, renting an apartment (especially in Manhattan) is an attainable way of escaping your dorm woes.

The first thing to do when apartment searching is to decide where you would like to live and how much rent you are willing to pay. You should also consider whether or not you want to live with roommates. If so, how many and how will the bills and space be split? How far from school are you willing to live?

Another thing to consider, especially as an impoverished college student, is the very real possibility that based on where your apartment is located, you may be denied a lease unless you have a guarantor. A guarantor is someone who co-signs your lease and in doing so promises to take responsibility should you not pay your rent. Unfortunately, with school loans, part time jobs and the outrageous costs of most things in NYC, this may be your only financial option. However, if you do not have a guarantor there are still many places that accept and welcome college students, even if your financial standing is lackluster.

After you have figured out what you're looking for, you can begin your search. There are a few ways to do this. You could simply call a real estate agency and put them to work. Another option is to begin and lead the search yourself, whether or not you settle with an agent in the end. If you take this route and do the search yourself, two of the best websites for searching rentals in NYC are Craigslist.com and NYTimes.com. Craigslist.com is especially helpful because not only does it display available apartments, they offer neighborhood and pet options.

Once you have gotten a feel for the types of apartments that will be available to you, you may want an agent. Some upsides to hiring a real estate agent include their intimacy with the real estate market. Due to this, they may have access to apartments that have not yet been put on the market, and will also possess certain negotiating abilities or previously established relationships with building owners; this can work in your favor. The obvious con is their fee, which can range from 10-20 percent of the annual rent.

When you finally find an apartment, whether it is with or without a real estate agent's help, you will have to apply for the apartment. What this includes is filling out the actual application, as well as providing tax returns, letters of employment, identification and bank statements. Also, if you plan on using a guarantor, all of their information will be needed as well. Shortly after filling out and submitting this information, you will find out if you have been approved. If you have been approved, you will then sign the lease. With this you will most likely be expected to pay the first month's rent and to pay a deposit fee of equal amount to a month's rent.

James Buckingham, a senior literature major said, "The dorms tend to be stuffy and slightly conservative. Living in an apartment offers a certain amount of freedom, as far as what you can and cannot do."

Although deciding, searching and moving in may seem to be a never-ending process, when it is done and over with and you have a place to call home, it will all be worth it.