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Renting an Apartment in Stillwater
What You Should Know
Stillwater is a city in Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 39,065 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Payne CountyGR6. Founded December 12, 1884 it was the first settlement in the Unassigned Lands.
Geography
Stillwater is located at 36°7′18″N, 97°4′7″W (36.121538, -97.068537)GR1, 50 miles North Northeast of Oklahoma City.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 73.3 km˛ (28.3 mi˛). 72.1 km˛ (27.9 mi˛) of it is land and 1.2 km˛ (0.5 mi˛) of it (1.62%) is water.
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 39,065 people, 15,604 households, and 7,318 families residing in the city. The population density was 541.6/km˛ (1,402.7/mi˛). There were 16,827 housing units at an average density of 233.3/km˛ (604.2/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city was 82.48% White, 4.30% African American, 3.89% Native American, 5.05% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.88% from other races, and 3.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.50% of the population.
There were 15,604 households out of which 20.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.1% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 53.1% were non-families. 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the city the population was spread out with 15.2% under the age of 18, 38.2% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 13.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females there were 102.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,432, and the median income for a family was $41,938. Males had a median income of $31,623 versus $22,312 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,789. About 12.6% of families and 27.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.2% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.
Culture
Oklahoma State University is the largest employer, biggest land-owner, and cultural center of the town. A quintessential college town, Stillwater has undergone tremendous changes in the past decade with the opening of several new strip malls and shopping centers. More national chains are moving in to replace regional and locally owned businesses, fueled by the expanding population and bulging youth demographic. Alcohol plays a large part in the culture of Stillwater and there is a thriving bar district near campus referred to as "The Strip." Although the Strip technically is only Washington Street between 6th Street (Highway 51) and University Street, colloquially it can also cover other bars within walking distance, such as the Stonewall or Eskimo Joe's. The economy of Stillwater is dictated by the college and the accompanying swell of population. Many businesses, especially restaurants, cafes or bars, shorten their hours during the summer. Weekend hours often are expanded to include Thursday, the traditional party night before the students leave town for the weekend. Parking is premium on Saturdays during football games, and many residents earn extra money selling lawn-parking for anywhere from $10-30. Recently, the University has purchased large tracts of land north and east of the stadium for a planned Athletic Village. As the land purchased is in the middle of Stillwater and used to be prime housing, the Village, as part of the OSU Master Plan for expansion, has caused upset in the community. The party-driven college culture has led to numerous provisions by the city to limit loud, drunken parties. Oklahoma law prohibits alcohol sale after 2am, and that is when all the bars close as well. Stillwater city ordinance prohibits the consumption of alcohol in public, including the front or backyard of a property and the sidewalks. Enforcement depends on the neighborhood and strength of the party.
Stillwater has little entertainment for its size. It has one movie theater, a Blockbuster, a Hastings Entertainment, and Vault Video, a locally-run video store. There is a bowling alley, a YMCA, and a mini-golf course inside Swick's Pizza, a local restaurant.
Items of interest
* Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education is located in Stillwater
* Meridian Technology Center is located in Stillwater.
* Pop punk band The All-American Rejects formed in Stillwater.
* Stillwater is home to Red Dirt, a branch of alternative country music that is quickly gaining popularity in much of the United States; Alternative country bands Jason Boland & the Stragglers and The Great Divide, were formed in Stillwater. Cross Canadian Ragweed also called Stillwater home during their early years.
* Stillwater is home to Oklahoma State University with enrollment of over 21,000 students in 2002. Notable alumni include country singer Garth Brooks and former NFL running backs Thurman Thomas and Barry Sanders. Chester Gould, creator of the Dick Tracy comic strip, attended the school when it was known as Oklahoma A&M.
* The National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum was dedicated in 1976 in Stillwater.(http://www.wrestlinghalloffame.com/)
* Popular Oklahoma pizza chain Hideaway Pizza was established here in 1957 and can be found at the corner of Knoblock and University.
* A popular hangout for college students, Eskimo Joe's restaurant is on Elm street near the OSU campus. Locals claim that the Eskimo Joe's T-Shirt is the second most collected t-shirt in the world, after the Hard Rock Cafe T-Shirts. (http://www.eskimojoes.com/)
* The first Sonic Drive In is located in Stillwater on Main Street. (http://www.sonicdrivein.com/history/part2.jsp)
* The shopping cart was invented in Stillwater in 1937 by Sylvan Goldman.
* James Marsden, Cyclops in X-Men, was born in Stillwater.
* The Sheerar Museum on Duncan Street houses a collection of historical artifacts of daily life from before and through the time of Oklahoma's statehood. (http://www.sheerarmuseum.org/)
* Oklahoma Botanical Garden and Arboretum
* Karsten Creek Golf Club - Exclusive golf course located in Stillwater that houses a world-class clubhouse, restaurant, secluded lodges, and a renowned championship golf course that is Home to the Oklahoma State Men's and Women's Golf Teams. (http://www.karstencreek.net/)
* Stillwater is served by the Pawnee Bill District, Cimarron Council of the Boy Scouts of America
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.