By Lauren Underhill
With Northeastern begging for housing deposits and realtors gearing up for the spring rush, students are beginning to check their bank accounts and make the ultimate choice: on or off campus.
Northeastern’s on-campus apartments range from $2,350 to $4,730 per semester. Though Boston-area apartments can be pricey, the cost of living at Northeastern can drive some students to the surrounding streets.
James McNulty, a sophomore civil engineering major who currently lives on campus, said he is looking for an off-campus apartment for the fall.
“We want to find a place with cheaper rent. Many apartments in the Mission Hill area are cheaper than on-campus housing, along with offering much bigger spaces,” he said. “It’s obviously not as convenient as living right on Huntington, but the tradeoff with the distance and the reduced rent plus increased space makes it worth it.”
McNulty said he and his friends are looking to spend about $1,800 to $2,600 a month for a four-bedroom apartment, which will be cheaper than what each of them are now spending to live in Davenport — $3,700 a semester.
Though the apartments in areas like Mission Hill and the Fenway are generally lower in price than on-campus apartments, buildings near campus are sometimes more costly.
Symphony Properties rents out standard two-bedroom apartments from about $1,100 to $1,500 a month. Apartments on Gainsborough Street are pricier, running from $1,700 to $2,600 a month for two bedrooms.
Rich Dolabany of Symphony Properties said 60 to 70 percent of their company’s renters on Symphony Road, St. Stephen Street and Gainsborough Street are Northeastern students.
However, there are many other nuances when it comes to deciding between on-and off-campus housing that students take into consideration.
Sophomore English major Christine Gordon said she likes the convenience of living on campus.
“Having an apartment makes me feel unattached from the college and my friends,” Gordon said. “I figure that since I’m guaranteed through middler year, I might as well take advantage of that and not worry myself with apartment hunting just yet.”
When living on campus, students must swipe into their buildings using their Husky Cards and sign in all guests, a safety measure which can also be an inconvenience to some students.
“I would hate to have to sign people in whenever I wanted anyone to come over,” said middler English major Erin Simmons.
Simmons is one of the area college students who lives in the Gainsborough Street properties. Her apartment is a short walking distance from campus and classes, which Simmons said she enjoys.
“There are lots of NU students that live on Gainsborough so it almost feels like campus housing,” she said.
Simmons said students should only live off-campus if they are ready for the responsibilities of bill paying and dealing with landlords.
Simmons said her utilities usually cost about $75 a month when split between roommates. She also factored in the cost of furniture when making her decision.
“Furniture can be as expensive or as affordable as you want to make it,” Simmons said. “Web sites like craigslist.com often give away furniture if you can go pick it up and sometimes previous tenants will pass furniture to the next renters.”
Vice President for Student Affairs Ed Klotzbier said despite all the buzz about the benefits of off-campus living, Northeastern’s housing options offer more convenience to students than they might always realize.
“Living on-campus provides a primary location for residents to be close to everything they need — classes, student organization meetings, dining facilities, the library and athletic facilities,” Klotzbier said.
Marina Iannalfo, director of housing services, added that living in a centralized, on-campus location can provide numerous amenities to students, some of which will stay with them long after they leave the university.
“Recent studies indicate that students who live on-campus, especially freshman year, but also beyond that, are more successful in their academic pursuits than those who live off-campus,” she said. “It provides an opportunity to meet and develop life-long friendships with a diverse group of individuals.”
