OWN YOUR KID'S COLLEGE HOME ONE PARENT'S STORY: $4,000 FOR 3 YEARS OF HOUSING KATHY FETTKE & DONNA BEHRENS
She doesn’t know what they will do yet when he graduates. They will probably continue to rent it out but it will
be a whole different ball game. Her son is the onsite “landlord” right now, and he’s bringing in personally
screened tenants. When he graduates, they will have to
hire a property manager and accept tenants they don’t
know.
Kaaren says: “It’s a great option for a kid. Mitchell’s had to
learn some things. He’s not just a roommate. He’s the
boss of the house. So he’s learning how to be an
authority figure.”
Finding the Right Deal on a College Home
Location matters in any real estate deal, so you will have to run the numbers on potential college districts. If
there’s more than one college or university on a list of candidates, you might want to factor in the savings or
revenue from home ownership as opposed to dorm or rental expenses before the choice is made. It could
help sway a decision about where to
go.
Mitchell
received
an
athletic
scholarship which landed him in
Kansas. With real estate in his Mom's
background, they checked out homes
in the area, and found one three miles
away.
Here’s some of Kaaren’s advice for
parents: Find a home that’s as close
as possible to the school. The closest
ones may be more expensive, even if
they are older and in need of more
maintenance. She says her son’s
home is further out, but close enough
to campus, and is only about ten years
old and in good shape.