Cy*Burr // spring 2004

Sheets of plastic and duct tape cover the windows in the house Richie Brearton’s rents on University Drive. The plastic bulges from the air trapped inside it.

“We had to seal the windows,” he says. “I guess they think paint is a good sealer, which it’s not.”

The thermostat in Brearton’s living room is set at 68 degrees but reads only 55 degrees.

There’s more than just location to consider when moving off campus. Students need to pay attention not only prices but also to the conditions of their prospective homes—Brearton’s heating problem is definitely not unique.

Students often seek off-campus housing during their junior or senior years, sometimes without knowing what to expect from the structures or the landlords. Many of the houses and apartments for rent around Kent State are old, and while most are well-kept, students should be aware of the hidden costs and possible headaches involved in living off campus.

John Ferlito, health commissioner of Kent Health Department, says a house’s heating system should be able to maintain a temperature of at least 65 degrees, though 55 degrees or above is still safe.

Ferlito says Brearton and his roommates should contact the Health Department about their heating.

“We have a $340 gas bill,” Brearton says, holding up the bill. Last month’s bill was more than $300. “It’s just little things you expect to work, and they don’t.”

Brearton, senior history major, is one of many students who live off campus in an older house.

Brearton rents his house through ASW Realty and Management.

Rillis Moneypenny Jr., general manager of ASW, is in chage of about 525 apartments, and at least 300 of them are student rentals.

“A lot of the homes in Kent that we manage are older,” Moneypenny says. “An older home is bound to be less efficient than a new one.”

To lower their gas bills, Moneypenny suggests students compare prices of different gas companies and switching providers. Covering windows with plastic, caulking or insulation should cut down the amount of cold air coming in and money going out, Moneypenny says.

“There’s things they can do,” he says. “With the type of winter we’ve had, it’s been a problem. It’s going to be high any way you look at it.”

Brearton says the house has “a shitty heating system, leaky windows and a bad electrical system.”

He and his roommates would try to warm up the house with space heaters, but the heaters would blow a fuse because they overloaded the electrical system.

The back porch also is sinking slowly into the ground, he says, pointing. The porch is visibly slanted.

“It’s sinking into the abyss.”

The plumbing in the upstairs bathroom has broken three times, Brearton says, and each time has left them without any running water.

Brearton says they have told their landlord about water pressure problems in the past, and a maintenance person fixed it.

“It’s just an old house,” he says. “And it looks bad.”

Moneypenny says ASW has an emergency service line available 24 hours a day for tenants who have a problem that needs to immediate repair. For non-emergencies, he says, the maintenance workers try to fix things within two or three days.

“We manage so much property,” Moneypenny says. “If you don’t fix it, it will pile up.”

But there are some problems, such as drafty windows, that ASW doesn’t have the authority to repair.

“Windows are a big issue,” Moneypenny says. “Sometimes I agree with them (that the windows need to be replaced), but I can’t do it. We manage for other people—we don’t own the property. The kids want us to upgrade, but we can only do what the owner allows us.”