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October
17, 2002
New
housing service aids students and staff
The
Sacramento area continues to grow, and CSUS is helping students
and employees deal with one of the challenges that presents with
a new off-campus housing services office. The department, which
opened last spring, offers free information and resources on housing
in the community.
"The campus decided that with the Sacramento housing market
getting really tight, that this service would be really beneficial
to students, as well as new faculty and staff coming into the area,"
says Peggy Luers, off-campus housing services coordinator. "We
want to make it a little easier for people to relocate to Sacramento."
The bulk of the housing resources can be found on the department
website, www.csus.edu/offcampus. The site offers off-campus rental
listings, rental tips, legal hints, and safety and security information.
"The information we provide is important because there are
students who have never rented before and they don't quite know
where or how to get started," Luers says. "If you've never
been through the experience before, you might not know what to look
for or what to ask. We point them in the right direction."
The free self-service website also allows for property postings,
housing searches and roommate advertisements. The online rental
listing service is a joint effort of off-campus housing services
and student government.
"We put the information on the web to make it more accessible,"
Luers says. "Everyone has different schedules, and now people
from out of town can explore housing possibilities without having
to come to the campus."
The off-campus housing services office in Foley Hall 238 offers
additional information, including real estate and property management
contacts, mortgage program information, maps of the area and visitor
guides.
"People are welcome to come in and get the handouts, or just
come in and talk about what their options are," Luers says.
"We have a big map of the area so we can orient people to where
the campus is in relation to surrounding areas and neighborhoods.
We also have information on the Sacramento community and visitor
guides to help them find out what is going on in town if they have
never been here before."
While off-campus housing services provides housing resources, it
is up to the user to follow through with the legwork. The staff
doesn't find homes for people to live in or do roommate matching.
For more information on off-campus housing, call (916) 278-3766.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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