The first thing I did after accepting a job as a general assignment reporter at the Leader, besides calling my mom, was to search “apartments for rent in Festus, Mo.,” on Google.
Google gave me 394,000 results in .49 seconds.
Whew! There seemed to be many rental options in my target area. False.
When I called landlords asking for rental quotes and details about their buildings, it was all bad news. I was not qualified to live in apartments in my price range. Why, you ask? Oh, I wondered that, too.
Most of the apartments on my list were designated as Housing and Urban Development (HUD) sites, intended for low-income renters, and my salary was going to be a bit too high.
I had never imagined making too much money to live somewhere. But there I was. Soon to graduate college, I didn’t qualify for low-income housing, but I wouldn’t make enough to afford other options. I was in the middle ground.
I’m not expecting anyone to break out the violin for me. My salary for my first full-time job is not the issue. Instead, the issue is that rental properties in Jefferson County for someone in my situation are few and far between.
I expanded my search to the whole county. I looked in De Soto, Imperial, Arnold, House Springs – everywhere.
A roommate could have been my solution, but I wanted to move on from the roommate phase of my life. I wanted my own space. I just never knew it would be so hard to find.
It became a daily routine to wake up and search for apartments on Zillow, apartments.com, rent.com, trulia.com and more.
Closer and closer to my start date, I was still without a place to live. For a couple of weeks, I was driving from Cape Girardeau once or twice a week to tour apartments.
One day, I saw a place in my price range emerge in Festus and I jumped on the opportunity. I toured the space and signed a lease the same day.
It wasn’t my dream apartment, and I had to do away with some things on my must-have list, like hook-ups for a washer and dryer. But I had found something within my budget that will work for now. What a struggle and what a relief.
Recently, the Jefferson County Council had two apartment complexes come up for vote, and approved both – one in Imperial and the other in High Ridge.
The council approved the Imperial proposal with a 5-1 vote on June 24 and followed with a 6-0 vote on July 22 in favor of the High Ridge project.
I was shocked to see the push back the proposals received. For the Imperial project, large crowds turned out at governmental meetings to protest and some sent letters to the Leader, concerned about traffic, property values, the “quality” of renters.
The High Ridge proposal got a kinder reception in meetings, but stirred up a ton of negative comments when a story was posted to the Leader Facebook/website pages.
Several of those who commented on Facebook said the complex would attract crime. I couldn’t help but laugh. I have no idea why a renter like me would bring more crime by simply having a place to live. Crime is everywhere and it doesn’t increase just because a community adds housing.
The developers of the High Ridge complex plan to build 40 units, with rent ranging from $1,000 to $1,500 a month, while in Imperial, 84 units are planned with a $1,200 monthly tab.
One commenter said she thought the high rent would keep out “degenerates.”
Ouch. I agree those are high rents, but am I low-class if I can’t afford it?
I have rented for more than three years but do not consider myself, or any of my neighbors over that time, as degenerates.
People ask why I don’t just buy a house, like it’s the easiest thing for someone at my station in life to do. I always laugh and ask if they want to buy me a house.
Sometimes, renting is a person’s best option. You can move around, if need be. You can call a landlord to fix a problem. And, you don’t have to already possess a nest egg for a down payment on a home.
Dissenters to those two apartment developments should realize that the council must approve projects that meet the criteria in the county’s regulations, as these two did. Otherwise, the county will be sued, and will probably lose, with taxpayers picking up the tab.
Not all those who commented had bad things to say. Here’s one that gave me hope.
“Apartments that might attract recent college graduates seem like a great addition for Jefferson County.”
I agree. The fact that Jefferson County is adding rental options is exciting to me.
Maybe when my lease is up, I will end up with my dream apartment without going through a nightmare of a search first.
