Condos offer alternative to renting for students

Every year about this time, IU students think about their next semester in Bloomington. Apartments, greek housing and on-campus residences are usually the normal locations students choose. While those opportunities are convenient for many students, the idea of owning a home has grown for those not interested in typical housing options.\n"We market right off the bat to young professionals, whether or not they are grad students, young home buyers or students with families," said David Blackwell, executive manager of neighborhood subdivisions for Blackwell Construction, Inc.\nThe company was started in 1981 by Ken Blackwell, David Blackwell's brother, and provided Bloomington with building complexes like Rolling Ridge Apartments. Lately, the brothers have expanded their business into other parts of Monroe County and into Indianapolis.\nEach one of the roughly 20 townhouse condominiums that Blackwell Construction builds every year is directed toward the 18- to 25-year-old age bracket and costs upwards of $100,000. For those who cannot afford that bill immediately, they can choose to pay a monthly mortgage ranging from $500-$750.\nBlackwell said many of the students enjoy typical amenities like a washer and dryer, a refrigerator, air conditioning and a garage. The prime townhouses Blackwell now promotes are Stella Ridge Townhomes, located on Smith Road near the College Mall.\nMuch of their recent promotion is directed toward younger groups as they understand that students who have the luxury of owning their own home make that choice because it gives them more options then they had before, McPherson said. Many students who own their own home do so in order to make money by renting out their house to friends at a rate that they want.\n"It's nice to be the one in charge," sophomore Adam Miller said. \nMiller currently lives in one of the townhouses of Stella Ridge and said he enjoys the process of picking out a group of roommates that pay him direct rent.\nMany parents are willing to co-sign leases if a student has a sibling who might be attending IU later on in their academic career. By using this theory, they can save money by giving their second child the ability to live at the home, McPherson said. Another advantage for many students is that owning their own home gives them a head start in life by teaching them many real estate tricks they did not understand before, he said.\n-- Contact Staff Writer Drew Smith at asmithii@indiana.edu.