While dorm life does have its own special charm and appeal, many students choose to move out of the residence halls at some point.  Don’t get me wrong, my old dorm (and I literally mean old), with its 10×13 cells, will always have a special place in my heart.  Fifty guys with little ambition to do work and way too much creativity led to some exciting times (maybe too exciting, if possible).  However, most students eventually try to opt for a little more privacy (yes, everyone was aware of every person’s bad decisions) and space (I can still identify every roommate I’ve had by scent).  Also, don’t forget freedom from those sometimes pesky Residence Assistants.

Even though some students may envision an unparalleled life of fun and excitement once having his or her own place out of university housing, the task of just finding somewhere to live can be enough to make many students question the decision to ditch the dorm life.

Apartments close to campus can command rates comparable to prime city housing.  Additionally, student apartments are often not quite as nice as one would expect for the dough they cost to rent.  Landlords who specialize in student housing often expect their tenants to keep a house that is a little bit less clean than Danny Tanner’s.    This doesn’t mean that landlords don’t take care of their properties, but don’t expect to get marble floors when paying marble floor-worthy rental rates.

Also, students need to be careful to check how moving out of university housing may impact financial aid.  You may pay only 700 dollars a month, but if you have to give up a few grand in scholarship money, the bill for the freedom to host parties may be much steeper than expected.

Money is not the only issue to consider when hunting for a student apartment.  Make sure to check into what your landlord is like.  A few of my friends rented a trailer from a guy known to be the “local slumlord.”  The place looked decent at first, but after a few months, a leak in the ceiling spawned an ecosystem on the sunroom ceiling and a foot deep sinkhole appeared in the living room carpet.  The hassle to get these things fixed wasn’t worth the effort.  To make matters worse, the landlord thought my friends had moved out early, then gave some of the fishing and golfing gear left in a closet to his kids.  Lesson: if your landlord is often referred to as the “slumlord of _______,” do not rent.

Be wary of the OCD landlord as well.  I slept on a friend’s couch one weekend only to wake-up to his landlord washing the window 3 feet in front of my face at 7 on a Saturday morning.  Also, no one wants to deal with being accused of moving community porch furniture 3 inches from its original position.  Shoot for a landlord that is neither Adrian Monk nor found on NYC’s Worst Landlords site.

Best of luck with any apartment search.  While finding the right match of apartment, price, and landlord can be an adventure, the right combo can lead to a great college experience.  Even if you can’t score the best of all worlds, you’ll likely end up with an interesting tale at the very least. 

The sky is falling?  Or is it?  I can tell you that the actual sky isn’t falling (at least as far as I know).  However, the current economic picture is strewn with colors of doom and gloom.  With pundits and politicians making statements saying that we could be moving toward another Great Depression, people are wondering how they can prepare for the future.    

However, it’s tough to prepare when we don’t quite know what the future holds.  Will the economy collapse?  Will it stabilize?  Will it grow?  Will Ralph Nader be the next president?  I’m willing to place bets on one of those questions more so than the others, but unfortunately, the questions I (and everyone else) am less sure of are the more important ones.

Rather than continue on this morose tangent, let’s say to ourselves, “gray skies are gonna clear up, put on a happy face.”  While there may be many negatives due to the current state of the economy (lending freeze out, retirement package fallouts, weak job market, etc.), for those who have money stashed away (and the money is surviving the turbulent stock market ride), now may be the time to find a bargain in the housing market.

Unfortunately, only those with fantastic credit will be able to easily obtain a mortgage.  Why is this so?  Because the last time banks were lending money to everyone and their bankrupt grandmother, we had a housing crisis/stock crisis/banking crisis/trying to remember the current crises crisis. 

My recommendation: keep on as happy a face as possible and save for a rainy day.  Last time Americans really learned how to save was around 1929.  So get an early jump on things and don’t wait til’ the bottom falls out in order to learn the value of saving a few bucks.  And even though the mattress may appear safe to keep wads of cash under (there’s still plenty of people from 1929 who bank at Serta Financial), check out all your low risk options (CDs, bonds, checking accounts, etc.).  Because while a falling sky hasn’t occurred (to my knowledge), house fires, tornados, burglars, and peeing the bed have been known happen.  However, I suppose you need to have a home in order have the luxury of worrying about such things.       

Students attend college for a variety of reasons; but be it for an education, to make more money, or to party down, college tends not to be cheap.  Yea, there are plenty of ways to cut costs at college, and I’ve tossed around a lot of those ideas in the past, but a lot of cost cutters come at a price: the price of fun.  When you work all day, it’s nice to be able to play all night, but excitement can come with a financial and educational price tag.

So, how can you save money while also creating more free time outside of the library?  The solution is called CLEP.  The College-Level Examination Program (aka CLEP) is a way to quickly earn college credit at a fraction of normal tuition costs.  All you need to do is register to take a CLEP exam and meet your school’s necessary passing score. 

Sounds easy?  Well it is for the most part.  Schools typically don’t allow students to CLEP out of core major courses or most courses above the introductory level.  But depending on your school, there may be more than a year’s worth of courses for which you can receive credit by CLEPping. 

A CLEP exam costs only $70.  Compare that to what a normal 3 credit course can cost (into the thousands at some private schools).  Let’s do the math…$2,100 for 3 credits - $70 for a CLEP exam = $2,030 to put towards other bills, entertainment, or savings. 

Granted, CLEPping out of a class is no guarantee.  It’s like taking a final for a course you’ve never formally taken (I know, because I’ve CLEPped my fair share of credits).  A decent amount of studying is involved, but compared to 3 hours a week of class for 15 weeks, plus homework?  Not so bad.

More money and more time?  What’s not to love?  And if you’re really ambitious, you can even use CLEP to help make space for a minor or another major.  It’s not often something so grand presents itself.  I highly recommend taking a look into this golden opportunity because who doesn’t want more time or money?

Every person needs a little help sometime, and who doesn’t like to lend a helping hand when possible?  Whether you’re helping a little ol’ lady across the street, changing a tire for a distressed person on the side of the road, or building a school in Africa with your bare hands and personal resources, being a good neighbor can make a person feel warm and fuzzy inside.

However, there is a type of help that many people cringe in being asked for (and rightfully so).  “Hey man, can you lend me a couple bucks?”  Oh the problems this question causes.  Your friend may only ask for ten dollars, but you have to wonder if your friend really is going to be “lent” a few dollars.  I can remember spotting a friend six dollars my freshman year of college, not to be repaid during the spring of my junior year (and lucky to be repaid at all).

Not that six dollars is a major loss, but for some reason, lending money doesn’t conjure up the fuzzies like donating time at a local homeless shelter.  Loaning a friend, even a good friend, a few bills is a tough gig because it’s rather impolite to break the legs of the kid you’ve known since kindergarten over thirty-five dollars.

Yet, some people are willing to loan multiple thousands to a friend on hard times.  I’m not saying people shouldn’t try and help each other out, but it can be really tough to collect when your bar buddy is shoving the friend card in your face every time you try to get your money back.

According to MSN Money, 43 percent of people say that they haven’t been paid back for the largest loan they’ve made.  Even worse, almost one-third of people haven’t been paid at all for the largest loan they’ve given to a friend or family member.

Granted, we want to help our friends and would like for our friends to help us.  But, 57 percent of people have seen a relationship end because of unpaid debt.  I suppose the moral of the story is, if you lend a friend some cash, do it without expecting to be repaid.  So don’t grant loans, just give your money away.  Well, don’t give all your money away, but consider it a bonus if money you lend actually turns out to be a loan.