Moving to Madison- Neighborhood Profiles (Sheboygan, Monroe: affordable apartments, leases, houses)

[OnlyTime6]

I'm moving to Madison for grad school in Aug. I'm coming from California & I don't know the area.

I want to live within walking/biking distance to UW.

1. Where are the QUIET areas to live?
2. Where are the cheapest areas? (Safe and not trashy, of course.)
3. Where is a cheap place I can stay at the beginning of Aug while I locate permanent housing?
4. If I arrive the first few days of Aug, will it be hard to find permanent housing in a week or two, with a lease that will begin in mid-August?

Thank you for any help you can offer, especially if you're a student who went through this!

[Chelito23]

That is prime moving time, I would recommend coming earlier to find a place and avoid the moving madness when 40,000 people all are trying to do the same thing, find the same kind of place all for a good price. Drover, another excellent poster who seems to know anything you could want to know, might have some detailed info....but I will give my opinion. Affordable apartments near campus tend to be the student ghetto. If you want affordable and withing walking distance...it will not be like living in a nice suburban gated complex. This is not a commuter school....so you might want to visit first or come a little early to get the feel for the area and check things out in person.

[katreese]

Hello,

I agree with the previous poster on all counts. I have never lived on campus or moved here as a student, but I can tell you from living here that if you want something within walking distance, it's going to be all students and therefore noisy, and yes, August might be a bit late.

Biking distance will, of course, get you further, although, unless you are a SERIOUS HARD-CORE EXTREME outdoors type, you won't be biking in the dead of winter . Our bus system is pretty decent, if you are relatively close to campus.

Check out the Hilldale Mall/Sheboygan Avenue area, or anything near University Ave or the UW Hospital. The buildings are older but they are popular with grad students and relatively close to campus (bikeable and really quick on the bus). They aren't the cheapest areas in town, but if you want quiet/safe/not trashy, it's as cheap as you're going to get.

Also check out the university housing web page http://www.housing.wisc.edu/

If at all possible, come out and talk to some students in your program and look at some places (just driving around will tell you A LOT). I'm graduating next May and leaving here to go to grad school SOMEWHERE else (maybe CA!) so I will soon be in the same boat!

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Chelito23

That is prime moving time, I would recommend coming earlier to find a place and avoid the moving madness when 40,000 people all are trying to do the same thing, find the same kind of place all for a good price. Drover, another excellent poster who seems to know anything you could want to know, might have some detailed info....but I will give my opinion. Affordable apartments near campus tend to be the student ghetto. If you want affordable and withing walking distance...it will not be like living in a nice suburban gated complex. This is not a commuter school....so you might want to visit first or come a little early to get the feel for the area and check things out in person.

I don't really have much to add to this, except to note: If you want a lease starting in August close to campus, you're probably already SOL. August leases for any remotely habitable strucure near campus are pretty much already signed by March. You're going to have VERY slim pickin's. You might luck out in, say, June and find someone on Craigslist who decided not to return to school and is trying to find someone to take over their lease. But chances are you'll end up with one or more roommates.

[Vagus]

Originally Posted by Drover

I don't really have much to add to this, except to note: If you want a lease starting in August close to campus, you're probably already SOL. August leases for any remotely habitable strucure near campus are pretty much already signed by March. You're going to have VERY slim pickin's. You might luck out in, say, June and find someone on Craigslist who decided not to return to school and is trying to find someone to take over their lease. But chances are you'll end up with one or more roommates.

Was just in Madison a couple of weeks ago and there seemed to be tons of houses in the "student ghetto" area that still had "for rent" signs up, for whatever that's worth . . .

[OnlyTime6]

Thanks, everyone. That's very helpful. I have to move in August- there's no other way around it, and I don't want to rent over the internet "site-unseen." So, I guess I'll have to deal w/the slim pickings or the student ghetto or something. Although housing in Madison can't nearly be as bad as it is in Santa Barbara, I'm sure... right?

[vagabond wannabe]

no, it won't be as bad as SB, but it is pretty pricey all over. i lived in many spots on campus and never found anything to qualify as "ghetto" in the modern sense of the word (now, in the traditional sense, yes, there are many neighborhoods that are comprised almost solely of students).

check out the areas around tenney park, lake wingra and the zoo, and just west of the stadium. personal faves and relatively high on the "cheap and quiet" scales.

oh, and while MID-august is crazy time, early august is still somewhat quiet. but if you can go early, do it. madison in the summertime is the next best thing to paradise (just pretend you're not from SOCal)

[fiveoaksmom]

My grandmother lives in the Maple Bluff area, it's pretty nice there!

[strwiz]

Having grown up in Madison and gone to school at UW Mad, I would strongly suggest that you come to town early enough to look around at the various neighborhoods. In addition to those mentioned already, I would suggest the Vilas Park area, St James area and Monroe St. You definitely want to find a two-flat style older house rather than the newer apartment buildings, which are loud and more expensive (usually). There are some nice areas east of campus near Tenney Park, but they are not within walking distance. As someone mentioned previously, bus service is pretty good in the city. All of the areas are safe, with the usualy caveat about using common sense for an urban setting. Good luck to you!