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Renting an Apartment in Midwest City
What You Should Know
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 54,088 and is the seventh largest city in the state.
Midwest City is a city of 25 square miles whose southern border is Tinker Air Force Base and is part of the Oklahoma City "OKC Metro" Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Midwest City was founded by W.P. Atkinson in 1941 when he heard speculation that an air field was going to be built in the area. Atkinson, along with others, initially planned Midwest City as a one-square-mile development. The air field, when built, was called the "Midwest Air Depot" and was later renamed in honor of Major General Clarence L. Tinker of Pawhuska, Okla. General Tinker lost his life while leading a flight of LB-30 "Liberators" on a long-range strike against Japanese forces on Wake Island during the early months of World War II.
The economy of Midwest City prospered and continued to surge until the early 1980's when the oil bust of 1983 occurred. The bust was a severe economic blow to not only the greater OKC metro area, but to also the twin cities of Midwest City and Del City. From 1983, Midwest City's nominal price for real estate stagnated for over a decade.
In many ways, the city remains relatively unchanged over the last twenty years. Air Depot Blvd spanning from Tinker Air Force Base to Heritage Park Mall still serves as the major commercial district of the city. Of course, many businesses have come and gone, but there are a few that have stood the test of time. Andy's Akropolis, a Greek restaurant started by Larry Hicks, has served many thousands of hungry airmen through the last thirty years. The restaurant, like its city, remains almost the same as it was when it first opened its doors in the 1970's. About.com notes that many state and national organizations find Midwest City to be an ideal site for conferences and special events because of the location and the amenities, although a specific list of those organizations remains lacking. However, Rose State College does have a new performing Arts Theater with an outdoor amphitheater in Rose State College's Communications Center. The area also features the Oklahoma Welcome Center, Senior Center, Water Park, and nature and recreational trails.
Midwest City's monolythic economic base of Federal tax dollars via Tinker Air Force Base has helped the city weather the drastic blows to the State's mainstay oil and agricultural economy. Tinker is a major area employer. The General Motors Oklahoma City Assembly plant was another major employer from its opening in 1979 until its closure in February 2006. GM closed the plant as part as a cost-savings measure.
Over the past few years, there has been a large amount of development in Midwest City along I-40. The Reed Center, a 60,000 square foot convention center, was built in 2003. Because of this, several hotels have been built in the area, including a $15 milllion Sheraton hotel that is attached to the convention center. Also, many big box stores, such as Lowe's, Home Depot, Target, Kohl's, Marshals and Best Buy have been built along I-40. Some of these stores are a part of the new Town Center Plaza development along SE 29th Street facing I-40, which replaced the aging, largely deserted Atkinson Plaza shopping center as well as several other developments, most of which are situated on the city's west edge.
Throughout the year, Midwest City is host to many unique special events such as: Star Spangle Salute in July, Global Oklahoma - A Festival of Cultures in October, and Holiday Lights Spectacular in November and December.
Midwest City was formerly a Certified City and has successfully transitioned to a Century Community.
In 2006 Midwest City obtained the prestigous ISO Class 1 from the Insurance Services Office. [1]
Geography
Location of Midwest City, Oklahoma
Midwest City is located at 35°27′44″N, 97°23′3″W (35.462244, -97.384292)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 63.7 km˛ (24.6 mi˛), all land.
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 54,088 people, 22,161 households, and 14,759 families residing in the city. The population density was 849.3/km˛ (2,199.3/mi˛). There were 23,853 housing units at an average density of 374.5/km˛ (969.9/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city was 69.46% White, 19.55% African American, 3.49% Native American, 1.65% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 1.54% from other races, and 4.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.05% of the population.
There were 22,161 households out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples living together, 16.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.5% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,027, and the median income for a family was $40,604. Males had a median income of $31,276 versus $22,543 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,220. About 11.2% of families and 13.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.1% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.
Trivia
* Midwest City is the site of the first Sam's Club location; the store opened in April 1983.
Points of interest
* Midwest City Hall Arboretum
* Tinker Air Force Base
Some Things to Consider When Looking for an Apartment...
When searching for a new apartment make sure to take your time to think
through what are the most important things to you in an apartment and plan your
search based on those priorities. Here are some things to consider when planning
your move:
1. Consider the areas where you would like to live
* What is the crime rate?
* If you have children - what rating does the local school system have?
* Is there area convenient shopping, health and recreation services in the area?
2. Make a list of your housing priorities
* Do you have pets?
* Do you need parking?
* Do you need to be on the ground floor?
* What amenities are important to you - swimming pool, fitness room, in unit
laundry?
3. Evaluate the building
* What is the condition of the unit and building?
* Are the grounds maintained?
* Are windows, steps, and railings in good condition?
* View the property at night. Is it safe and well lit?
4. The security of the property
* Are there security service? When is the guard on duty?
* Does the building have controlled access?
* Does each unit have secure door and window locks?
5. Talk to the neighbors
* Ask other residents whether they are satisfied with the building.
6. Amenities
* Who is allowed to use the amenities?
* When are they open?
* Are the fees charged to use those facilities included in rent?
7. Ask about Utilities
* Does the owner or tenant pay the utility bills?
* Are any utilities included with monthly rent?
* Do units have separate thermostats to control heat and air conditioning?
8. Review the lease
* How much notice must you give before moving out?
* Can the rent be increased? If so, by how much and how often?
* Are pets allowed?
* What is the security deposit and cleaning costs upon move out?
* What is the responsibility of tenants for damage to property?
* Is there a penalty for breaking a lease?
9. Information too bring to a lease signing
* Credit Report
* Pay stubs/tax returns
* Reference
* Application
More Apartment Information
An apartment (or flat in Britain and most other Commonwealth countries) is a
self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. Apartments
may be owned (by an owner-occupier) or rented (by tenants).
Some apartment-dwellers own their apartments, either as co-ops, in which the
residents own shares of a corporation that owns the building or development; or
in condominiums, whose residents own their apartments and share ownership of the
public spaces. Most apartments are in buildings designed for the purpose, but
large older houses are sometimes divided into apartments. The word apartment
connotes a residential unit or section in a building. Apartment building owners,
lessors, or managers often use the more general word units to refer to
apartments. Units can be used to refer to rental business suites as well as
residential apartments. When there is no tenant occupying an apartment, the
lessor is said to have a vacancy. For apartment lessors, each vacancy represents
a loss of income from rent-paying tenants for the time the apartment is vacant
(i.e., unoccupied). Lessors' objectives are often to minimize the vacancy rate
for their units. The owner of the apartment typically transfers possession to
the occupant by giving him/her the key to the apartment entrance door and any
other keys need to live there, such as a common key to the building or any other
common areas, and an individual unit mailbox key. When the occupant move out,
these keys should typically be returned to the owner.
Apartments can be classified into several types. Studio, efficiency, bed-sit, or
bachelor apartments tend to be the smallest apartments with the cheapest rents
in a given area. These kinds of apartment usually consist mainly of a large room
which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. There are usually kitchen
facilities as part of this central room, but the bathroom is its own smaller
separate room. Moving up from the efficiencies are one-bedroom apartments where
one bedroom is a separate room from the rest of the apartment. Then there are
two-bedroom, three-bedroom, etc. apartments. Small apartments often have only
one entrance/exit. Large apartments often have two entrances/exits, perhaps a
door in the front and another in the back. Depending on the building design, the
entrance/exit doors may be directly to the outside or to a common area inside,
such as a hallway. Depending on location, apartments may be available for rent
furnished with furniture or unfurnished into which a tenant usually moves in
with his/her own furniture. Permanent carpeting is often included in an
apartment.
Laundry facilities are usually kept in a separate area accessible to all the
tenants in the building. Depending on when the building was built and the design
of the building, utilities such as water, heating, and electric may be common
for all the apartments in the building or separate for each apartment and billed
separately to each tenant (however, many areas in the US have ruled it illegal
to split a water bill among all the tenants, especially if a pool is on the
premises). Outlets for connection to telephones are typically included in
apartments. Telephone service is optional and is practically always billed
separately from the rent payments. Cable television and similar amenities are
extra also. Parking space, air conditioner, and extra storage space may or may
not be included with an apartment. Rental leases often limit the maximum number
of people who can reside in each apartment. On or around the ground floor of the
apartment building, a series of mailboxes are typically kept in a location
accessible to the public and, thus, to the letter-carrier too. Every unit
typically gets its own mailbox with individual keys to it. Some very large
apartment buildings with a full-time staff may take mail from the mailman and
provide mail-sorting service. Near the mailboxes or some other location
accessible by outsiders, there may be a buzzer (equivalent to a doorbell) for
each individual unit. In smaller apartment buildings such as two- or
three-flats, or even four-flats, garbage is often disposed of in trash
containers similar to those used at houses. In larger buildings, garbage is
often collected in a common trash bin or dumpster. For cleanliness or minimizing
noise, many lessors will place restrictions on tenants regarding keeping pets in
an apartment.
In some parts of the world, the word apartment is used generally to refer to a
new purpose-built self-contained residential unit in a building, whereas the
word flat means a converted self-contained unit in an older building. An
industrial, warehouse, or commercial space converted to an apartment is commonly
called a loft.
When part of a house is converted for the ostensible use of a landlord's family
member, the unit may be known as an in-law apartment or granny flat, though
these (sometimes illegally) created units are often occupied by ordinary renters
rather than family members. In Canada these suites are commonly located in the
basements of houses and are therefore normally called basement suites.
Staying in privately owned apartments rather than in a hotel is quickly becoming
popular with travelers.