University of Miami

[TheFloridaGuy]

I spent about 10 hours today driving around Coral Gables looking for a place with no success.  Miami traffic is horrible! People were honking their car horns at me when the traffic light was still on red.  I didn't think the places were that dumpy, sure they were old, but definitely livable.

[jeffgdula]

Hm, I will admit I find some of this news a little scarey. I suspect that the place I put a deposit on must be a little "sketchy". It is less than $800 a month for something very close to campus. Still, I also think that you all have higher standards than me. I've lived in some pretty amazingly bad places in my time. Most apartments in the States are pretty nice when you get down to it. By nice, I mean that they have hot water, flush toliets and preferablly a shower or bath somewhere in the building (even if I have to share it with other people). A lack of deadly insects is also a plus. If I have these things, I'll be pretty happy. The only thing I do care about is safety. Anyone know what 59 Avenue in South Miami is like? I would like to find my car still present when I wake up every morning...

Let me know the name if you want and I will try to drive by or check it out or perhps get a pic or something.

[jeffgdula]

Anyone know what 59 Avenue in South Miami is like?

when i went to miami two months back, i went to a friend's house who lived right on 57th avenue and west flagler.  he had a nice place: one bedroom, decent sized living room, new bathroom and kitchen, and parking lot.  the washer and dryer were on the side of the building, however i noticed that this is common for many places in miami.  he paid 725; i thought it was very reasonable.  plus, it's not that far from school -- shoot down 57th (fifteen minutes tops, no traffic) and you run into u of m.

my friend is cuban, and the area is nearly all latino, however if that doesn't bother you, i think the area is a good option.  while no one would ever say that saftey is overrated, i am used to living in inner cities (new orleans and sao paulo), so "sketchiness" is a relatively subjective term for me.  i'm very flexible, so i believe that i will have some options in my price range.

Ok, my apartment is on biscayne bay blvd and rent starts at 900 something a month. Each floor you go up, the rent is raised $100. I currently pay $1159 for a 1 bdroom on the 16th floor

sounds beautiful, and definitely reasonable for brickell.  so the apartments on the first fourteen floors are 900 dollars?

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I looked at a condo around here that was nice but $268,000.  I didn't see too much else that seemed to be viable options.  But the drive wouldnt be bad at all from here if you could find something.

[jeffgdula]

I spent about 10 hours today driving around Coral Gables looking for a place with no success.  Miami traffic is horrible! People were honking their car horns at me when the traffic light was still on red.  I didn't think the places were that dumpy, sure they were old, but definitely livable.

Well I'm not sure what you found, but I didnt find anything that was even old and well taken care of.  One landlord literally told me he didnt take care of the premises because he didn't have to and would still be able to fill his units up.

Also, Linzy and others: good luck getting concessions from anywhere in Brickell.  And anything cheap there is for a very good reason.  That land is way too expensive for anybody to rent units out there for anything reasonable.

[mike29]

I know you said you ruled out the beach, but did u look around there?  What did you think?

I spent about 10 hours today driving around Coral Gables looking for a place with no success.  Miami traffic is horrible! People were honking their car horns at me when the traffic light was still on red.  I didn't think the places were that dumpy, sure they were old, but definitely livable.

Well I'm not sure what you found, but I didnt find anything that was even old and well taken care of.  One landlord literally told me he didnt take care of the premises because he didn't have to and would still be able to fill his units up.

Also, Linzy and others: good luck getting concessions from anywhere in Brickell.  And anything cheap there is for a very good reason.  That land is way too expensive for anybody to rent units out there for anything reasonable.

[canegirl08]

For calikate and anyone considering living a long distance from the law school I have been expressly advised NOT to live more than a 15 minute drive to school for the first year. (My brother graduated from law school last year)  We will have to use the library for all research our first semester and even a 15 minute drive can get annoying when you have to go look up one citation.  Also, even though a place is only 7 miles from campus, that can mean a 15 to 20 minute drive if you have to get on Dixie (US 1).  I agree with TheFloridaGuy!  Miami traffic is some of the worst I have ever been in!

My old apartment in Dallas was 1 bedroom/1.5 bath,900 sqft, walking distance to campus, detached garage, all utilities paid (minus phone, internet and cable), gated community, VERY safe and I paid $800 a month.  I am VERY spoiled.  I honestly thought I could find something similar in Miami for a little over a grand.

The thing that really gets me though is that in the "cost of living" for loans, the financial aid office allots $800/month for 9 months for rent.  I am so frustrated that they are so unrealistic!!! All I could find for $800 a month was a rundown apartment in a bad area or a room in somebody's house.  

[jeffgdula]

I know you said you ruled out the beach, but did u look around there?  What did you think?

I spent about 10 hours today driving around Coral Gables looking for a place with no success.  Miami traffic is horrible! People were honking their car horns at me when the traffic light was still on red.  I didn't think the places were that dumpy, sure they were old, but definitely livable.

Well I'm not sure what you found, but I didnt find anything that was even old and well taken care of.  One landlord literally told me he didnt take care of the premises because he didn't have to and would still be able to fill his units up.

Also, Linzy and others: good luck getting concessions from anywhere in Brickell.  And anything cheap there is for a very good reason.  That land is way too expensive for anybody to rent units out there for anything reasonable.

I would personally rule out the beach as freshman just because of distance.  It took 20+ minutes with almost no traffic to get there so it would definately be too long with any sort of traffic.  The stuff there was old but the biggest problem would def. be parking.  It was even muggier here than the rest of Miami and probably has alot of bugs.  But you would be paying for location because the buildings arent any nicer than anything near coral gables.  Plus I imagine the beach would get old.  But to answer your question, i didn't go in any of the stuf fon the beach so I cant give a real good answer.

[Harrahs]

i took a tour at the law school on a friday and met a friend afterwards on the beach.  it took me, and this is not an exaggeration, an hour and a half to get there and park.  now, it was easter weekend, so i am willing to concede that part of that was due to spring breakers, but it was a miserable experience, nonetheless.  i agree with the others: the traffic in miami is the worst i have ever seen in the states.

that being said, the night before the tour i stayed in fort lauderdale, and, despite sitting in traffic for about fifteen minutes trying to get on I-95, was able to get to the school quickly, without traffic on 95 or us-1.  personally, i believe that if you are dedicated enough to leave home early and spend all day at the law school, then you can probably live a distance from school.  while most south floridians are not first year law students, i am sure many are used to a lengthy commute, and that goes for inhabitants of other cities as well.  i think the traffic and the distances are a shoker for me because i live in new orleans, where i can get anywhere i want in the city and the surrounding suburbs in fifteen minutes. 

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[frankm007]

Be smart about this guys (Living in miami all my life and having parents who drive a cab, we know about distance, traffic, location!)... I will be renting out my place next year (unfortunately later than most want to move into a place).

The apartment is located on flagler and 94 avenue:

10 minutes from UM (taking the palmetto expr.)
10 mins from all major malls (international, dadeland, malls of the american, dolphin)
Winn-Dixie, Dennys, Wendys right across it
10 minutes from Golds Gym, Publix, Sushi-Ko (I love this sushi bar!), an $8 barber shop for the guys!
5 minutes from Starbucks

The location is unbeatable! 1,100 square feet - 2 Bedroom, 2 bathrooms, new carpet installed last week in both bedrooms, new paint, new blinds, amenities include a pool, tennis court, basketball court, a cardio room (it's small, but I love it), and 24 hour security. Best of all, I'm planning to rent it for $1,000/month. 

So the moral of the story... while brickell and southbeach are beautiful, going to UM and living there might not the best of ideas (traffic main concern, trust me). But don't settle for an ugly place, there are many good places out there!

[calikate]

I'm not gonna worry about the drive because I plan on keeping the same schedule next year (out the door by 6:10 am, home by 8:30 pm), so hopefully I'll avoid traffic. And, besides, from what I read somewhere, finding parking in UM structures is a pain since they fill up quickly and I don't want to spend 1/2 hr looking for a spot. I think driving at the right time of day is key.