When summer break rolls around, many students leave campus and head back home or maybe to a whole new city for an internship or job.
For many of us, that could mean paying a few more months on a lease than we can afford to — or, even worse, paying rent in two places at once.
In order not to waste money, many students choose to sublet their apartments, meaning someone pays you to stay in your apartment/room while you’re not there. Not only is it a great way to save money, but it also helps keep your apartment safe since it won’t be vacant for months at a time, possibly attracting criminals.
The very first thing you want to check is your lease to find out if your lease allows you to sublet your apartment. Make sure to find this out before proceeding any further. While you might be able to get around the rules without getting caught, it’s never a good idea to blatantly violate the rules of your lease.
If you are able to sublet your apartment, here is some advice on finding a subtenant, which is the hardest part of it all.
Leasing office/landlord
While this seems like the most obvious place to go, it’s one of the most important places to check. The leasing office/your landlord probably has a heads up if anyone has contacted them about finding somewhere to stay for a few months. While you can’t rely on them to find someone for you, you can leave them your information and let them know you are interested in having someone stay in your place.
Believe it or not, you have access to more of your peers than you think you do. While I can’t speak for every school, at most schools you are able to email all of your classmates for a particular course in one fell swoop. Obviously, if that’s against your school’s rules to use the course list serv, then don’t do it, but it’s worth a try! Also, if you’re in any other email groups (i.e. Greek Life, academic group), you should also try sending out an email to them as well.
You’d be surprised by how large of a network you can reach just by posting your room opening on your own profile. A friend could know of a friend who knows of a friend who is looking for somewhere to crash this summer! Also, it’s a heck of a lot less awkward if you’re getting someone to sublease who you know through other people.
Facebook has also created all sorts of groups based on your school that you can belong to. Some groups include your major or even just the year you graduated. Try posting on there to see if you get any interested parties.
Craigslist
For many people, Craigslist is the go-to spot to find living arrangements. Post your info on there (and a few pictures, if you so choose) and see if you get anyone interested in subleasing!
Off-Campus Housing Office
More than likely, your school has an office set up specifically for off-campus housing. While they can’t guarantee they’ll find you a subleaser, they have access to all sorts of resources on campus that could help. They may even have a subleasing board you can post on or maybe will send out a Facebook post or tweet for you, depending on how involved the office is with social media. They could also offer some localized ideas on how to find someone to rent your room from you.
College newspaper
If your college newspaper sells classifieds, consider placing an ad. It’s not very expensive, and you’ll be reaching your target demographic, since most college students pick up the paper.
