Finding an Apartment Project

For this project, you will need to decide what features are important to you for finding your first apartment. Imagine
yourself ready to move out of your parents house or away at college and needing a place to live. Where would you want
to be? What things do you need and want in an apartment? How much can you afford?

Background Answer these questions in complete sentences. Change your answers to bold or another color
1. Where do you want to live and why? (City/country, what state/area?)
-> I want to live in Dublin, Ireland because it is beautiful and there is a lot of culture that isnt here in America
2. Will you be living with a roommate, multiple roommates, or alone? Why?
-> I would be living with my friend John because he is very familiar with Ireland and wants to live there. Also, he
would be able to show me around and help me in a new country (as well as paying for the apartment).
3. What are the 5 most important features or amenities of an apartment for you? Use the PDF Apartment Checklist
for ideas and write 1 sentence for each to explain why it is important. -> 1. Vermin free. Honestly because ew, thats
disgusting. 2. Nature trails and park areas. This is because I love nature and want somewhere to go to walk around
when it is nice out, but not too far from my apartment. 3. If I can control the temperature levels. This is because I am
thermally challenged and always either too hot or too cold. I would need to change the temperature like all the
time. 4. If I can hear my neighbors or not. This is because I am pretty private about my alone time and I dont want
to hear the neighbors and I dont want to them to hear me. 5. Access to high-speed internet. This is because I eed
internet access because Im always doing things on the internet.

4. Find TWO apartments that meet many (or all) of your qualifications and fill out the information you can on this
table.
apartments.com, forrent.com
zillow.com or trulia.com just set filters to RENT
NOT rent.com (you need to make an account)
Search your college newspapers classifieds section too!

Qualification Apartment #1 NAME Apartment #2 - NAME
Location
Inchicore Road, Kilmainham, Dublin 8, Co. Dublin
North Circular Road, Dublin 7, Co. Dublin

Number of
Bedrooms
2 Studio
Number of
Bathrooms
1 1
Square Footage
2 Beds/1 Bath Studio Apartment w/ I bath
Rent amount
$1227.78 $880.36
Length of lease
(month/year)
Monthly Monthly
List apartment
features
- Central Gas heating
- Two large bedrooms
- Large Kitchen
- Fully tiled Bathroom
- Electric shower
- Very quiet house
- Minutes from Phoenix park
- Central Heating
- Washing Machine
- Dryer
- Dishwasher
- Microwave
- Garden / Patio / Balcony
- Highly desirable location
- Cable Television
- Washing Machine
- Microwave
- Internet

- Fully furised
Security deposit
n/a n/a
Layout of the
apartment
n/a n/a
Pictures


Utilities included
(water, garbage,
electric, heat, etc.)
n/a n/a
Parking
Yes, but would probably use buses anyway
because the bus stops are right up the road
from house
Yes, there is a driveway.
Pet policies
Yes, you can have pets Yes, you can have pets
Other costs
n/a n/a
Other interesting
information
This property also has a private rear garden. Fully furnished.
Roommate(s) or
Alone
No but can/will find a roommate b/c of 2
nd

br
No
5. Now compare your two options. Which one would you prefer to live in? Why did you decide on this apartment?
-> I would prefer to live in the first option because it is much bigger than the second option, is in a great location,
and has a private garden.

6. Will you be able to afford this apartment?
a) Assume you earn the median salary for high school graduates working full time - $29,950 per year.
i. First, find your net income by multiplying your salary by 0.75 = $22462.50
ii. Then, find how much you will take home per month by dividing that number by 12 = $1871.90
iii. Next, find what you should spend for rent by multiplying that number by 0.30 = $561.57
iv. Is the rent for the apartment less than what you calculated in the line above? Not even close
v. If yes is this a good idea? Why?
vi. If no could you afford the apartment with a roommate? Yes, if I could put down an extra $100 ish
bucks for my share.
b) Assume you have the average income of a full-time college student, which is $14,400 according to the
National Center for Educational Statistics.
i. First, find your net income by multiplying your income by 0.75 = $10,800
ii. Then, find how much you will take home per month by dividing that number by 12 = $900
iii. Next, find what you should spend for rent by multiplying that number by 0.30 = $270
iv. Is the rent for the apartment less than what you calculated in the line above? No!
v. If yes is this a good idea? Why?
vi. If no could you afford the apartment with a roommate? No, I wouldnt be able to afford it.
c) Assume you make the median salary of a person in the career field youre interested in. Look up the salary
on https://www.bls.gov/ooh
i. First, find your net income by multiplying your salary by 0.75 = $40627.50
ii. Then, find how much you will take home per month by dividing that number by 12 = $3385.63
iii. Next, find what you should spend for rent by multiplying that number by 0.30 = $1015.69
iv. Is the rent for the apartment less than what you calculated in the line above? No
v. If yes is this a good idea? Why?
vi. If no could you afford the apartment with a roommate? Definitely.