Students who move off-campus may gain freedom and independence, but often pay a price. Some of Hanover's apartments are overpriced, overcrowded and under-maintained.
Town Manager Julia Griffin said the most acute problem facing some of Hanover's living spaces is overcrowding. She said some landlords probably rent "more rooms than they should be, given the zoning."
She said the town has received around a dozen complaints about housing conditions in the last six months. Griffin said the complaints have driven her and Town Health Officer William Boyle to meet with other town administrators next week to discuss ways to address the problems.
"It's not as if our phones are ringing off the hook, but it's enough that we've decided to talk as an administrative staff to respond and make sure the problems get fixed," she said.
Griffin said the town has already taken steps to alleviate overcrowding problems, which are actually zoning violations.
"We've already sent letters to half a dozen ... property owners where there appears to be overcrowding," she said. "It's mostly in residential homes that have been converted into student housing."
Griffin said the letter is a warning. If there is no response, the town will mail a second letter informing the property owner of a $100 a day fine for every day the violation continues.
College Real Estate Manager Woody Simonds said his office has received complaints from students about "lease and communications violations."
Simonds said the Real Estate Office publishes listings of available property, but has no control over the conditions of the apartments.
"There's no screening," he said. "We let the buyer do his or her own screening and determine whether a rental is suitable or not."
Some students have horror stories about their off-campus housing.
Jonathan Zimmerman '98, who lived in an apartments on West Wheelock Street last summer, said he and his roommates lost $425 of their security department for damage they did not create.
Zimmerman said they left the apartment in "immaculate" condition, and the charges were bogus or inflated.
"We were charged $100 to steam clean the carpets, which were a mess when we came in," he said. "He also said it took four hours to remove nails from the walls of the apartment, and charged us $100 for the repairs. It's not a very big apartment."
Since Zimmerman and his roommates were off-campus in the fall, they were unable to resolve the dispute.
"He claimed he'd never gotten the sheet of damages that we filled out when we went in," he said. "There was no one here to fight with the guy. My mom tried fighting with him over the phone, and it didn't work. I think they know that you'll be gone."
Zimmerman advised students living off-campus to take pictures of the apartment before they move in. He suggested sending a copy of the list of preexisting damages to a third party.
Alix Baseman '97 said the maintenance man for her off-campus housing was frightening and ineffective.
"He was really weird. You got a creepy feeling about him," she said. "He definitely had some problems." Baseman said he was slow to respond to repair and maintenance requests.
Cameron Gossen '98 said he thinks the rent for his Sachem Village apartment is too high at $505 a month.
"It's a little more expensive than the dorms," he said. "I think it should be at least equal [to dorm room rent] because it's farther away from campus."
