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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1977)
v$ 4partment finders: Are they worth it? nga- Number of Units 6000 550 0 5000 gson war s. An 450 0 s the wsas 400 0 nens tory, man- 350 0 ocu- sues 300 0 ?ress 250 0 200 0 ■ 1500 1000 I0MBER OF ter if DUPLEXES the MVERED: ation rear- etary igmg Room !lt * xas T 7 ** 3 lively 10 ^ edited 1° "J' in reset'" TX77M!' , m ieAil‘'» Woodhif 11 eschpet l r Paul Antet* arol Me!« sty Ca»^ Kim Tys* ,h Calho"" ia Wlti'I'V ( PattfR 01 ' jii HerTef ..ft Cntl*” 1 ChairM* HenM- Cli’>f° n S hlicat^ By KIM TYSON Battalion Campos Editor You’re looking for an apartment, but have no idea where to start. There are about 75 apartment com- lexes in the area but where’s one hat fits your pocketbook and. Ireams? Some students at Texas A&M University solve this dilemma by try- ng one of the four commercial ipartment placement services avail- ible. But are the services worth the ime and effort? The four main businesses which ipecialize in this are A&M Apart- nent Service, Apartment Locator iervice, Apartment Placement Serv- THE BATTALION FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1977 Page 3 APARTMENT PLACEMENT SERVICES A&M Apartment Placement Service ( 36) Apartment Locator Service (43 ) Apartment Placement Se rvice (37) Apartment Rental Service ( 50 ) (This is an approximate count of units in apartments, duplexes and townhouses) Jensen said his company charges 25 to 50 percent of the first month’s rent as a fee from each complex, depending on the complex. le and Apartment Rental Service. The main drawing card of the serv es is they operate free to the pro- lective tenant—apartment com- 'exes pay for the service. The businesses have the same eneral procedure when someone omes in looking for an apartment, gents will usually ask what size of lartment, the number of bedrooms nd baths and the price range anted. Other questions include: luttle bus, apartment furnishings nd closeness to campus. The services have brochure files hich show floor plans, prices, park- ng, laundry and recreational cilities, or most of the information mnd by visiting each complex. An ;ent will drive you to the complexes o look them over. Some of the apartment placement wsinesses offer special incentives to (tract prospective tenants. Apart- nent Placement has a roommate natch-up file and A&M Apartment 'lacement offers a free lunch at a Deal restaurant if a lease is made through them. Apartment Rental will pick up newcomers at the airport who plan to look for apartments. Apartment Locator provides free city maps. Bill Sisson, president of the Bryan-College Station Apartment Association, estimates that 85 per cent of apartment complexes are covered by at least one placement service. “I haven’t heard anything bad from any of the apartments about the placement services, Sisson said. Sisson, who is also manager of Briarwood Apartments, said his complex uses some of the services. He said that the fee for the service is not passed on to the client through higher rent. “It wouldn’t he feasible for us to do that, he said. Although the fee enters into the budget of running a complex it is not considered a big expense item. Sisson said that each of the serv ices usually gives the same amount of service to the different complexes. He said 10 to 15 percent of those placed at a complex go through a placement service, depending on the time of the year. Most of the students who use the service are freshmen or transfer stu dents because they are unfamiliar with the area, Sisson said. “The majority already live here,” he said. Although the services are basically the same, each business operates a little differently. The six-year-old Apartment Ren tal Service is operated out of a real estate office and has three salesmen. Manager Don Jensen said about 50 percent of his company’s business comes from students. the AGGIE PLAYERS PRESENT RUDDER CENTER FORUM 8 P.M. 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At M M H * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Jensen sajd his company charges 25 to 50 percent of the first month’s rent as a fee from each complex, de pending on the complex. He said someone in the placement service must have a broker’s license and each person who rents must have a real estate license. Most of those who want housing and don’t come to a service don’t know it exists, Jensen said. “This service is useful for people who don’t know the town,” Jensen said. “The main reason some don t come in is they already know the area and where they want to live. He said, however, that a place ment service knows apartment avail ability and “can pull it all together in a few minutes for them.” Jensen said one advantage to a placement service is some com plexes let them know that they’re lowering prices to get units filled. “Most students wouldn’t know this,” he said. Eighty percent of the Apartment Locators business comes from stu dents, said manager Joyce Luedemann. The four-year-old serv ice is run by three realtors and also “If it’s a real tight market, all booked up, the prospective tenant will sometimes pay a fee for you to locate them there,” he said. operates out of a realty office. Luedemann said the busiest time for placement services is in the summer, during freshman orienta tions. “Students need to realize that they are under no obligation to lease when we take them out,” she said. Luedemann said one problem placement businesses face are people who use the service but don’t take out the lease through the serv ice. She said some are afraid they will have to pay later for the service. Agents lose their commissions unless the leasee goes through them for the lease. “But that’s just part of the business,” she said. TEXAS INSTRUMENTS Has The Latest In Programmable Calculators Check Loupot’s Bookstore F nr Complete Selection Gerald Farrar, manager of A&M Apartment Placement, said his com pany also manages houses, duplexes and tri-plexes, as do some of the other businesses. Farrar estimates that students comprise 75 percent of his two- year-old placement business. Six people work for the business. One reason that some students don’t use placement services is be cause in some cities renters are charged for it, Farrar said. “If,it’s a real tight market, all booked up, the prospective tenant will sometimes pay a fee for you to locate them there, he said. Farrar said his company negotiates with each complex for the fee, depending on the length of the lease and the size of the complex. Apartment Placement Service op erates out of a motel. Karen Davis, manager, said the service is five-years-old and run by three full-time employees and two part-time employees. Students comprise 75 percent of its business. Apartment complexes pay their fee based on a set percentage of the first month’s rent, Davis said. Davis said though the housing of fice at A&M tries to keep up with apartment vacancies, there are times when they don’t keep up with what’s available. Karen Switzer, student develop ment coordinator at Texas A&M, said the housing office provides serv ices comparable in some ways to these placement services. For the past two years, the office has kept up with vacancies in com plexes 20 units or larger. And for the past six years have provided a room mate service. Switzer said by next March, the Housing Office will also keep up with price information. She said one complaint she heard about apartment locators were from students who misunderstood availa ble vacancies and were placed in an apartment far away from campus. CASUAL FASHIONS Knowledge is your best for protection. 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