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Moving to Ames

CharlieKelly

CharlieKelly

New Member
Jun 2, 2012
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I am going to be moving to Ames in a month or so and am currently looking for places to live and trying to learn about the area. Does anybody have advice on property managers? Who to use or avoid? Good areas to live at? I'm not a student and am not looking to live in party central. It will be just me moving.

Also, what can you tell me about Ames? I'm excited about this move and think I will fit in with the culture of the area.
 
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Charley, let us know how old you are and where you will be working and how much you can handle for rent or payment and we can be more helpful. Ames is a great town and a really good place to live. There are very few places you do not want to live. It is more a matter of what are your tastes.
 
iowa_wildcat said:
Charley, let us know how old you are and where you will be working and how much you can handle for rent or payment and we can be more helpful. Ames is a great town and a really good place to live. There are very few places you do not want to live. It is more a matter of what are your tastes.
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Indeed, tell us a little more about you and what you want. Apartment/House/Trailer? Near campus? Near Main Street? Near shopping? Be around students or families? Where are you working in town? There are lots of great places and nothing is very far from anything else. The best deals are probably house rentals if you want that much space for yourself. As you visit Ames, tell us what catches your eye and we can tell you more about it.
 
Avoid anything being managed by Lad Grove. We had a horrible experience with him as a landlord. We rented from him because he allowed pets and we wanted a dog. Do not make the same mistake.

We had a GREAT experience with Rainbow Properties on the north side of West Lincoln Way (across from the Hy-Vee grocery store). The apartments were in great shape when we moved in, and the landlords were super responsive to everything. I tried searching for them and couldn't find a website - I think they might have been bought out or changed their name. The address of our building was 302 Hickory Drive. I loved that apartment.
 
I'm 28 and single. I'll be working on campus. I still enjoy going out and having a good time, but I don't really want to be in the student slums all that much. I would prefer a house or duplex, but I've had a hard time finding anything that will be available for an end of June move in. I've started searching around apartment complexes to see what is available for those too.
 
Ever thought about surrounding communities such as Gilbert, Slater, Huxley, Story City, etc. Where are you moving from, larger or smaller town?
 
My wife and I had a good experience renting two different apartments in the Somerset area from Total Property Management when we were in grad school. Close to Cyride, The Cafe, Brewers, Black Market Pizza, El Azteca. When we decided to move back to Ames after being gone for 4 years, we bought a house in the same area and haven't been disappointed.

If you like live music, the local bar scene, or some of the other cultural things going on downtown like the farmers market, you might want to check out the older neighborhoods within walking distance of downtown. I've been to some good live music shows at DG's Taphouse, for example. Cafe Diem is a good coffee house to hang out in.

As others have said, everything is close to everything in Ames, so it's mostly a matter of personal preference, what kind of neighborhood you want and what you'd like to be closest to.
 
CharlieKelly said:
I'm 28 and single. I'll be working on campus. I still enjoy going out and having a good time, but I don't really want to be in the student slums all that much. I would prefer a house or duplex, but I've had a hard time finding anything that will be available for an end of June move in. I've started searching around apartment complexes to see what is available for those too.
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Welcome to Ames. Almost all of the apartments "turn over" at the end of July. I've never seen another town that has so little variation. You may want to grab something for a month and then move to what you really want after than month. I suspect that there are lots of folks who would sublet for a month.

I would recommend looking at the houses north of Main Street known as "Roosevelt." Lots of bus service to campus if you need it. Close to downtown Main Street and not too far from Duff Avenue shopping and restaurants. And lots of ISU staff and faculty living in the area. Not as many UG students.

You could also look at houses south of Lincoln Way near Campustown, but you will have much more of a student influence.

I also like the area north of W. Lincoln Way mentioned above (across from the West Hyvee). Go north, not south or east of the West Hyvee. Fewer rentals and some nice neighborhoods.
 
I would also recommend the Somerset area. It is close to the north side of campus, within walking distance of restaurants and a grocery store, and is a newer area. Lots of young professionals in that area of town
 
If you are sure your going to want a home or a duplex, then I would recommend living in a surrounding community in an Apt. till something comes open you want. I think its "way" easier to get out of your lease, or have a 6 month lease, if and when you find a home in Ames. I think you can get a shorter lease in Ames, but you end up paying for those months in higher rent during the school year.
 
So I'm finally starting to narrow some things down. I can move in right away to the Laverne Apartments which seems to be pretty nice, but I won't be able to have my grill which I use a lot year round. The other would be to get a sublease, which I think I can get taken care of pretty easily, until Aug. 1st when more units are going to open up.
 
CharlieKelly said:
So I'm finally starting to narrow some things down. I can move in right away to the Laverne Apartments which seems to be pretty nice, but I won't be able to have my grill which I use a lot year round. The other would be to get a sublease, which I think I can get taken care of pretty easily, until Aug. 1st when more units are going to open up.
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The Laverne Apartments look to me like the kind that are going to be dumps quickly. They went up almost overnight (I think it was related to getting some FEMA money after our floods two years ago). If they are nice, it may only be because they are newer. It always seems congested there, even though there isn't that much more around it. You may have to just pull the trigger on something, get to town, and then find what you really want. Everyone here moves often.
 
CharlieKelly said:
So I'm finally starting to narrow some things down. I can move in right away to the Laverne Apartments which seems to be pretty nice, but I won't be able to have my grill which I use a lot year round. The other would be to get a sublease, which I think I can get taken care of pretty easily, until Aug. 1st when more units are going to open up.
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Check out Wessex Apartments off of University and Airport Rd. near the ISU research park.
 
If you're good with the ladies, you could probably just find a new barfly every night to go home with :jimlad:
 
besserheimerphat said:
The address of our building was 302 Hickory Drive. I loved that apartment.
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Ha! I lived at 302 Hickory Dr for a few years, starting in 1988. We moved in about a year after that particular building was built, so there were still some construction bugs (i.e. one of the toilets was connected to hot water). Way back then, the complex was owned by a retired ISU architecture (I believe) professor, who lived in the house to the northeast of the buidling.

Great apartment (at least it was back then), and I really liked living in that area.
 
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