Apartment Advice, Please!
So I'm living in this house with a roommate that I really don't like, and a crazy landlady. I love the house. Love it. I like the neighbourhood a lot, too. The rent is excellent. But I *really* can't stand my roommate. He's a dirty wanna be mountain man. He hasn't mastered the art of flushing the toilet and making sure everything has gone down. And he annoys me. I would not feel comfortable bringing a guy here (assuming that hell froze over and I had found one to bring). My landlady keeps the master bedroom as hers, and she's in and out whenever she's in town. She doesn't sleep here, and I almost never see her, but I can still feel her presence, and it makes me feel more like a guest. Also, she's REALLY bad about asking for bill money, so now we owe several months of utilities to her.
But the house is great! Big airy downstairs, full kitchen, guest bathroom, front porch with cafe table and chairs, fenced in back yard and patio with table and chairs. It's adorable. Apart from crazy landlady's ugly knickknacks. And I only pay $475 a month + utilities. But again, it's not my own space. I'm nearly 24. I'm feeling the need for my own space.
So my lease is up and I'm on month to month. Landlady wants to know if I'm staying or going. I've been looking around, and I found this little bitty 2 room apartment just under a mile from where I live now, for $575 a month including all utilities. So I'd get to keep the neighbourhood. And it's pretty cute - it's around the back of this house which has been divided into 3 apartments (2 in the front, and the wee one round the back). I'd have the parking space behind the house, so off street parking is included. The apartment has a teeny tiny front porch which, I suppose, could have a chair dragged out onto it. Also, the porch thing is in a tiny courtyard/garden along the side of the house, and there's a back yard that I have access to. It has a kitchen, a bedroom, a small hallway, and a bathroom. The kitchen has a stacked washer/dryer, which is pretty fantastic, because most small/cheap apartments in Atlanta don't even have washer/dryer hookups. And the bathroom has a bathtub. There's a park really close by, and a MARTA station 2 blocks away, so I could take the train to work if I wanted to.
I mean, it's pretty much perfect, except that it's very small, and having people over would be difficult. What if I wanted to entertain? But I can't afford much more than that, and I really think that's the best I'm going to find for that much money, unless I want to move further out or stumble across the greatest deal ever. There's another apartment complex that offers bigger apartments for slightly less money, but it's about 10 miles away from my job, instead of 5. This place that I'm looking at is a 12 month lease, and that's a bit daunting - 12 months in Atlanta. Oh God. I might die. Although I suppose if it came down to it, I could break lease and just lose my deposit. And a 12 month lease might force me to settle down a bit, quit looking over my shoulder so much at where I wish I was, face my current reality, and find a few friends.
So the question is: stay in the lovely big house with the awful people, take this almost perfect, but very small apartment, or keep looking. I'm leaning strongly towards the apartment (my own place, hurrah!!), but I am concerned about how small it is. I welcome input.
Also, 3 day weekend, huzzah! Just gotta get through tomorrow!
But the house is great! Big airy downstairs, full kitchen, guest bathroom, front porch with cafe table and chairs, fenced in back yard and patio with table and chairs. It's adorable. Apart from crazy landlady's ugly knickknacks. And I only pay $475 a month + utilities. But again, it's not my own space. I'm nearly 24. I'm feeling the need for my own space.
So my lease is up and I'm on month to month. Landlady wants to know if I'm staying or going. I've been looking around, and I found this little bitty 2 room apartment just under a mile from where I live now, for $575 a month including all utilities. So I'd get to keep the neighbourhood. And it's pretty cute - it's around the back of this house which has been divided into 3 apartments (2 in the front, and the wee one round the back). I'd have the parking space behind the house, so off street parking is included. The apartment has a teeny tiny front porch which, I suppose, could have a chair dragged out onto it. Also, the porch thing is in a tiny courtyard/garden along the side of the house, and there's a back yard that I have access to. It has a kitchen, a bedroom, a small hallway, and a bathroom. The kitchen has a stacked washer/dryer, which is pretty fantastic, because most small/cheap apartments in Atlanta don't even have washer/dryer hookups. And the bathroom has a bathtub. There's a park really close by, and a MARTA station 2 blocks away, so I could take the train to work if I wanted to.
I mean, it's pretty much perfect, except that it's very small, and having people over would be difficult. What if I wanted to entertain? But I can't afford much more than that, and I really think that's the best I'm going to find for that much money, unless I want to move further out or stumble across the greatest deal ever. There's another apartment complex that offers bigger apartments for slightly less money, but it's about 10 miles away from my job, instead of 5. This place that I'm looking at is a 12 month lease, and that's a bit daunting - 12 months in Atlanta. Oh God. I might die. Although I suppose if it came down to it, I could break lease and just lose my deposit. And a 12 month lease might force me to settle down a bit, quit looking over my shoulder so much at where I wish I was, face my current reality, and find a few friends.
So the question is: stay in the lovely big house with the awful people, take this almost perfect, but very small apartment, or keep looking. I'm leaning strongly towards the apartment (my own place, hurrah!!), but I am concerned about how small it is. I welcome input.
Also, 3 day weekend, huzzah! Just gotta get through tomorrow!