Friday Plans

First - I am going to shower and eat and get dressed and such...

Then, I'm going to Lakehurst to check out the apartment building on Cedar St:

Sara: thanks for your email.  I have 2 apartments available at 209 Cedar Street, on the Lake side of Lakehurst.  The house is located just blocks away from the Mc. Donald's.
 
    One is a 2 bedroom apartment on the second floor, with living room, eat-in-kitchen, refrigerator, full bathroom, main bedroom with walk-in-closet, and storage space in the attic.  Separate entrance and utilities.  This one goes for $800 per month.
 
    The first floor apartment has 3 bedrooms, huge living room, separate dinning room, full bathroom, kitchen with refrigerator, and washing machine, and usage of 2 porches and the shed, and storage space in the basement. Separate entrance and utilities. This one goes for $1,100 per month.
 
    Both require a one month deposit, and are ready anytime.  I'll have an open house on Sunday between 2 and 5 PM.  If you go and you like one of the units, an application will have to be filled, and a nonrefundable fee of $25.00 will be required in order for me to run your credit reports.
 
    I hope to see you on Sunday.  Any questions you may call me at (212) 675-xxxx  Thanks, Edgar.

I hope they're nice... $800 is cheap and I could bike to work!


Then I'm going to head East on 70 and check out Woodlake Apartments and if I don't like them then I'll check out the place John used to live, New Hampshire Commons. 

The plan is to have somewhere up here to live picked out and reserved by the end of this weekend.  I'm moving two weeks from now... and still not sure what state! 

Hopefully I won't be signing any leases until I'm actually moving in.  Should be able to get approved and 'hold' an apartment for 2 weeks.


Hmm... nap time :)

House in Lakehurst

Here's the house in Lakehurst that I'm going to see on Sunday.

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Picture test

Emailed from my sidekick...
Me and Danny

( 2 images )

Apartment complexes

After going to see the house in Lakehurst I decided to drive out to Lakewood and look at a complex which caught my eye online. It had 1 bedroom townhouses with 2 levels and said "open to below" on the floorplan. I like high ceilings. However, the prices were low ($825-875) and the reviews on apartmentratings.com were worse than usual (all the reviews are always bad). It talked of electric heat and $300 a month bills in the winter.

Well, I decided to go see it anyway. I drove around the complex and it was pretty typical. Older than the "luxury" ones... it had several sections, some called condos, some called villiage, and then one called apartments.

I circled back to the office in the front. There were men carrying things in and out, filing cabinets and such. The office was empty excpet for a guest where a tired lady was sitting talking to one of the workers. It took several minutes to get her attention.

I told her I was interested in an apartment and she asked if I had been there before and seen the brochures. I said no, it was my first time visiting. She asked what size I was interested in. I said 1 bedroom, but now I think I should have just asked what was available.

She had one apartment empty and after spending a few minutes searching for the keys she asked me if I wouldn't mind driving her and I out to see it.

We went to Building 5. The outside door had a keypad and intercom, she used the key to open it. The hallway smelled AWFUL. It was kind of damp. The apartment was 17A and on the first floor. It wasn't that bad inside. There was a man there who was painting and installing the refridgerator. It had new appliances and the kitchen was nice. The walls were angled and not square to eachother... I'd noticed that from the floorplan online. The sliding doors for the closet didn't open easily and the bathroom light had a fan with no separate switch (I always check that, I hate the fan noise). The only windows were a sliding glass door to the patio (which faced the parking lot) and a small window in the bedroom.

She asked me if I wanted an application, I declined saying I had just begun looking and would come back if I decided to apply.

She told me that the townhouses are much nicer, but so nice that there aren't many openings. She said that some of the tenants who had townhouses have lived there for 15 years.

Oh, on the way out of the apartment we passed the laundry room. There were 3 or 4 men in there trying to figure out what was wrong with the dryer that had smoke coming out the back of it. Yikes.


So... The second place is where my friend John lived up until he and his wife bought a house. Its a nicer complex with 3 story buildings. Modern looking. I could live there. The only problem is the cost... This was confirmed by my visit.

The office is nice, like a upscale realtors office with a sample apartment attached. The woman who talked to me was wearing a suit and was very professional, but also quite friendly.

I'd been in Johns apartment many times so I didn't opt for a tour. I asked what was available and said I wanted to move on the 20th. She seemed pleased that it was still 2 weeks in advance. She had one 1 bedroom available, but its on the 2nd floor. I'd rather not be in the Middle. I may be deaf, but I can hear and feel vibrations from neighbors better than I can hear a lot of things.

She said she had a top floor 2 bedroom apartment that would be available after 11/15. I said that sounded good.

She also has several 2 bedroom delux apartments available. They have 60 sq feet more living area than the 2 bedroom, but also cost more.

The prices?
Everything is discounted from now until mid December.
1 bedroom, normally 1075 is now 1000
2 bedroom, normally 1175 is now 1090
2 bedroom delux, normally 1250 is now 1150.

Not too bad. A 1 year lease is required and there is a $450 fee for breaking it, plus you are responsible for the rent until it is filled. I asked if there is more demand for 1 bedrooms than 2 and she said no, the only ones that are typically always available are the 2 bedroom deluxes.

And now for the rest.. There is a $75 application fee. 1 and 1/2 month security deposit, and an amenities fee every year of at least $75. Also, cats are $150 "administration fee" and $15 extra per month per cat.

I'm not sure what to think. They Are nice apartments. And the fees are almost reasonable. And I wouldn't have to move again for a year at least.

But the house in lakehurst is on a nice and so close to work. If I like the 2nd floor, it will be quite cheap too. So.. Waiting for Sunday.