Renting an Apartment, Sight Unseen

August 14, 2017 | By Taylor AuthorMy First Apartment

Moving cross-country often means renting sight unseen and you don’t get to set a foot into your apartment before the moving-in day. Here are a few tips to help you find the right place to live when you can’t check it out yourself. This may be obvious, but DO YOUR RESEARCH. There are times in life when…

International Student’s Guide to Finding Housing in the U. S.

July 12, 2016 | By MFA Editors AuthorMy First Apartment

While this student’s guide to finding housing, originally published in May 2015, is directed at international students, it offers good tips for anyone looking for off-campus housing long distance. You have just received your acceptance letter from your dream university in the United States and as you are celebrating with family and friends, someone asks…

No Hammer or Nails Needed! Easy Ways to Decorate Walls Damage- Free

November 6, 2015 | By Melissa W AuthorMy First Apartment

In college I was introduced to Command products by a dorm policy that only allowed Command wall adhesives. Now that I’ve been out of that dorm for 5 years, I still am a firm believer in using these products. When looking in the Command aisle at Target, it’s hard to imagine that the little packages…

International Student’s Guide to Finding Housing in the U. S.

May 21, 2015 | By MFA Editors AuthorMy First Apartment

You have just received your acceptance letter from your dream university in the United States and as you are celebrating with family and friends, someone asks you, “Where will you live?” You hadn’t thought about that. You go through the acceptance package, find the section about housing and realize that you have to find a…

How I Did My Long Distance Apartment Search

October 29, 2014 | By Jessie AuthorMy First Apartment

If you’ve ever tried remotely searching for an apartment in a new city, then you know it’s not exactly easy. When I was still living in Des Moines, Iowa, but planning my move to Denver, I spent hours on the internet, just searching for apartments. After figuring out which neighborhoods I wanted to focus on,…

I’m Moving To New York. But First, I’m Going To Visit.

September 19, 2014 | By Ben AuthorMy First Apartment

When I was 12 years old, my family made a trip to New York, and I absolutely loved it. Ten years later, I am planning to move out there, and I’m very excited about it! My college friend Ande and I had the idea to make the move from San Francisco about a year ago,…

5 Tips for Making a Winning First Contact with Landlord

September 10, 2014 | By Olivia AuthorMy First Apartment

So you’ve found an apartment you really like. Now what? Pounce on it like a lioness with hungry cubs pounces on a wildebeest! Chances are you are not the only potential tenant vying for that unit. You may find yourself communicating with the landlord via email only. Here are a five ways to make your email (or…

Researching Neighborhoods Before The Move

September 4, 2014 | By Jessie AuthorMy First Apartment

When I was planning my move to the mile-high city, the most important thing for me was researching Denver’s various neighborhoods to decide where I wanted to live. I grew up in suburban Des Moines, and went to college in a small Iowa town, so I expected that Denver, no matter where I lived, was…

My Five Step Moving Plan Progress Report: 5 Stars!

August 3, 2014 | By Mary AuthorMy First Apartment

I am only a week away from the big move and now I feel couldn’t be more prepared. My last post was about my five step plan to find an apartment from afar and the best way to move without spending too much money. I think I have done just that. With my mother getting…

Where to Stay in a New City While Apartment Hunting

March 4, 2013 | By doug AuthorMy First Apartment

Sometimes, it’s just not possible to find an apartment before you arrive in a new city. Maybe you got a sweet job offer, but it required you to drop everything and get there immediately. Maybe you totally meant to find a place a long time ago, but, well, kept putting it off. Or, perhaps you live a…