We were finally able to secure a new place to live for when we return to Provo. Looking for housing in Provo has been such a pain mainly because we are not there to do the apartment hunting. We found that if you are not the first to call, you won’t get the place.
So about two weeks ago I saw a listing for a condo which was listed as having 2.5 bedrooms (not clear what that meant exactly) and 2 bathrooms. The post was a day old but I thought I’d take a shot at it. I called the lady and she said it was still available but there was one person who had called and was just waiting for her to get and email pictures of the place. Since the first people hadn’t seen the apartment yet, I figured I’d be able to get my foot in the door if I could get someone over to look at it before she had a chance to send pictures. Devin’s sister Megan was working about a mile from it and said she could go take a look after she was off work. That ended up being perfect.
So here’s the scoop. It’s two bedrooms with a bonus room they call a loft (that’s where the .5 bedroom comes in). It’s sort of like a town home style (being two stories) but everything except the loft is on the first floor (naturally). It has two bathrooms, though I’m not sure if both are full but I know for sure that one is and that is good enough for us. It has a dishwasher, washer and dryer (yeah!), extra storage, one covered parking spot (Devin’s favorite), new carpet and tile throughout (my favorite), and Megan says it has a good, open layout. We were able to find a few pictures of it online because it was actually up for sale for a while but the owners were not able to sell it so they are renting it out.
There are two basic down sides to it (at this point anyway).
It’s not in the best location. It’s in a newer/nicer neighborhood and not in a ghetto part of Provo but the location is not very convenient. It’s on the opposite side of campus where Devin will be attending most or all of his classes so that makes for a long walk but he is happy to ride his bike when weather permits. It is a straight shot to the freeway but that’s down Center Street which has several blocks of 15 MPH zones and plenty non-timed lights. It’s not really close to anything else. But that’s in Provo terms. Technically everything we need on a daily basis is within two miles…for the exception of Costco. :o)
The other downside is that it was at the top of our price range but not out of it. We were looking at getting a town home for the same rent price but previous tenants claimed that the utilities were nearly three times as much as this place and it only had two bedrooms and 1 bath. Devin didn’t want to pay that much but when he found out there was an extra room that we can hopefully share for an office and craft room and a second bathroom (he got spoiled at the last place) he was pretty excited about it.
But the major up side for this place is that the contract only goes until the end of April. After that we can do month to month if we need to. That is so nice because we don’t have to sell the contract when Devin graduates like we would with most other places because they had 12 month contracts. That, in itself, makes it worth a few extra bucks.
So woo-hoo for not having to air mattress it for several days while we search for a place when we get back!
Oh that sounds awesome!!! It will be so nice to be somewhat settled into a place when your little sweetie bug gets there- and I totally think it will be awesome to have a craft room all to your own- you will really need a place to escape to that is all yours once in a while- i am really hoping if we get a house, that is what i can get too- i just wish this condo was in cali!! Like next door, actually- as we have seen, just being in Cali is not good enough!