Housing
From GSLISWiki
It is important to note that many people who have lived in Urbana Champaign for an extended period of time wish that they had bought a house when they moved to the area. This is because while rents are moderate ($300-$500 per month for most singles), houses tend to be pretty cheap, especially compared with the rest of the country. Therefore, if you are here for a Ph.D., or plan on staying in the area for a while, you may want to consider that option.
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[edit] Urbana vs. Champaign
Living in Urbana vs. Champaign is a personal preference. Urbana is quieter, so some people like that better. Downtown Champaign has the better night-life.
If it were not for my son, I'd live near downtown Champaign, as it is not very far on bike from campus. As it is, I picked Orchard Downs (which happens to be in Urbana), because it is full of playgrounds, so when my son visits, he makes instant friends. -Ingbert
[edit] Urbana Housing
Housing in Urbana tends to be nicer than in Champaign, but more expensive. The neighborhoods are quieter, especially the neighborhood directly east of the University. The houses in that neighborhood tend to be large, so most housing is taken by professors, though there are some houses which house multiple students. Urbananians tend to be a bit more high-class. And while downtown Urbana has some decent Bars, most of the nightlife is in Champaign.
- There is a maximum of 4 non-related adults who are allowed to live in a single house in Urbana. Most cities have similar laws on the books but Urbana enforces it to prevent misuse of single family homes close to campus as rooming houses.
- Urbana schools are based on location, so if you want a good school, you have to live in the appropriate neighborhood.
- Specific Urbana Housing Recommendations
[edit] Champaign Housing
Champaign housing tends to be less fancy than urbana housing, though it depends on where you live. It tends to be farther from the university, but it also is closer to downtown Champaign where there is more to do at night: coffeshops, bars, etc.
Champaign schools are based on resident preference, so to get in the school you desire, you enter into a lottery of sorts, and you don't need to live nearby to get in.
- Finding Housing in Champaign
- Specific Champaign Housing Recommendations
[edit] Savoy Housing
[edit] UIUC Housing
[edit] Child Friendly Housing
- The most child friendly place to live in Urbana Champaign that I am aware of is Orchard Downs Graduate Housing. It is a wonderful place with affordable apartments, 5 or more playgrounds, and has a large population of families with kids of all ages (and a large population of International Students as well).
- See also the Resources for Children page.
[edit] Tenant Union
- If you are checking out housing, stop by the Tenant Union (http://www.tenantunion.uiuc.edu/) in the Illini Union to get information about your landlord. They are very good and very helpful. They can advise on the apartment hunting process and how best to protect your interests. They also know which landlords and companies are scum, and they know which aren't. Stop in, email them or call them (tenant@uiuc.edu or 217-333-0112) to get the complaint records against landlords whose properties you're thinking about renting.
[edit] Related Links and Resources
- The official UIUC Housing page is at: http://www.housing.uiuc.edu/
- Check out the Cat page for cat-friendly housing.
- For rental listings, try the News-Gazette's classified ads section (http://www.news-gazette.com/). You can look at the apartment search section, but it doesn't provide information about, say, whether the property you're looking at has any open units. You can also look at the campus newspaper, the Daily Illini (http://www.dailyillini.com), which also has an apartment search (for currently renting properties), but, again, your best bet is the plain jane classifieds.
- Go to the New Student Orientation page.
