We WILL find a home...

I talked to Melissa just now, and today was not a good day. She is really sunburned from riding her rental bike around town all day. She keeps using sunblock, but I think it's not doing her any good. She loves the city and says that it's really beautiful out there. However, she's really hoping for a cloudy day to rest her sunburned skin.

She has a couple of leads on apartments, but can't get them to answer the phone numbers that they have listed with the ads. Tomorrow she is going to try Oregone's advice and head farther out of town.

Stay away from the campus area if you're a grad student. West University, in my opinion, is strictly for out-of-state freshmen that don't mind paying 20-35% above market for living space. The same goes for anything near Autzen. All of those early- to mid-nineties apartment 'communities' are for sorority girls and japanese exchange students (not that i have anything wrong with either of those two categories. Right, planned parenthood?).

I moved out of eugene in '99, so this advice may be a little outdated, but I think that the best way to find affordable housing in eugene can be summed up in these easy-to-follow instructions:

1)Go to that bus-plaza thing on Olive or Willamette street.
2)Choose a bus at random.
3)Get on said bus.
4)After it starts moving, start your stopwatch.
5)After exactly seven minutes passes, get off the bus.
6a)If you find yourself in Springfield, start over.
6b)If you're still in Eugene, look around.

Now is the best time to look for an apartment in Eugene, because the students are still using their trust-fund money to learn how to kite-board. Three weeks from now, you're screwed.

Stay away from anything that is offering a 'special.' For example, if someplace is offering a month of free rent, turn your tail and head elsewhere, because there must be a REASON why they have to offer you such a seemingly irresitable concession. A good deal turns into a nightmare within 15 days if you have to sit on the toilet a certain way without falling through the floor.

By wary of anything managed by Spyglass Property Management. Although I personally have never rented from them, I know that were at least two websites dedicated to their lack of, um, attention when i finally escaped from that town.

That cute little two-bedroom place on West 18th and Cityview? I don't think so. There's probably a reason that they still have the avacado fridge.

The best deal in town--when i left, anyway--was in Whittaker. If you can overlook that adult shop on 7th, then you can find a sweet deal that isn't too far from campus.

And you should totally hang out with the Eugene cachers. Most especially, you should feed them a lot of tequila, because the flaming marshmallows will follow. With hilarious results!

Everyone keep your fingers crossed, because I'm getting really nervous about this apartment search. I may have to start the "we will find a home" chant very soon.

posted by Raellyn @ 11:56 PM