Moving into new place for school

[Prepaguy23]

Hello everyone, I have searched the forum unable to find a similar topic. So my question is how did those of you who moved into a new apartment go about the process? I will be living off student loans for the most part but how did you go about taking care of the lease signing , etc. if loans are disbursed after school starts...what options do I have available to help cover the cost of signing a new lease?  I know some places can ask for 1st and last months rent...which could be upwards of 4,000 in some places. This is stressing me out and I’d love some input from someone who may have been in this similar situation! Thanks in advance. 

[UGoLong]

I would contact your program; they've been through this with every class. In fact, they may have assigned you to a "big" in the class ahead of you who can give you more specific facts related to your new town.

[MT2PA]

Frankly this is something students need to plan for ahead of time.  You need to save up and have money on hand to be able to do this.  Students PLEASE plan for this cost when determining how much it costs to apply to PA school.

Most places ask for a security deposit and 1st month (which yes, can be expensive if security deposit = 1 mo rent).  

Depending on where you're at in life you may need to hire movers, rent a moving truck, buy new furniture, etc.  

Sometimes you can get money early from your school - essentially they loan you money before your loan is disbursed.  This is usually only done in emergency situations (i.e something on their end is delaying the disbursement) and is a small monetary amount and is likely not going to apply to the situation you are presenting here.

The bottom line:  your options are to use money you have saved, beg/borrow from family, or seek a private loan unrelated to your school loan.

[aba51]

I got my housing all sorted out in January for a mid-May start and will be living off campus. My mom took out a loan to cover the security deposit and last month's rent and I'm in the process of paying her back. You can probably take out a personal loan to cover those initial costs and then use your student loans to cover the rest of your rent (which I will be doing). 

[Ket131]

1. Keep working and save money.
2. Get FAFSA and GRAD Plus figured out.
3. Make sure your credit score isn't garbage.
4. Proof of income to new apartment manager.
5. Get your bros to move you in with beer and pizza.
6. Lose money by tapping into savings until loan comes.

Asking for money from family or a cosigner on lease is an option, but that takes away your ability to say you made it on your own.  Which, depending on how you were raised can mean nothing to you, or a lot.  Just saying.