Large number of apartment complexes evidence of growing university enrollment.

A worker paints the window sill of the common area at University Trails.  The housing complex is transforming the area from a lounge area into more of a study room.

If you have walked by the union in the past semester, you have probably been bombarded by the housing booths that were set up both outside and inside.  For many freshman, the housing fairs were their first introduction to how many choices for places to live there are.

With over twenty apartment complexes and other small townhouse type establishments, students really have their work cut out for them. 

According to Holden Hays, a freshman psychology major, choosing somewhere to live the next year is frightening yet rewarding.

“It’s scary.  It takes a long time and the University just kind of thrusts you out in the open.  If you don’t pay attention to timing you can end up without somewhere to live.”  Hays said.

Other students were displaced because of the incident with Crosby Hall.

With next year’s freshman class once again being the largest in university history, all available campus housing was needed to accommodate the incoming class.

I sat down with freshman Brenna Ferrell to talk about how that affected her and what she thinks it means about the growth at Ole Miss.

For Wayne Pierce, president of Heritage Properties, the housing game has changed a lot since he was a student in the early ‘80s.

“The market certainly has changed, we saw the addition of some 2000 beds and they all got absorbed which surprised us.”  Pierce said.

According to Pierce, because of the results from the addition of beds, Heritage Properties decided to renovate their current properties as well as join on the building.

Chuck Jenkins, an Oxford resident and co-manager of two rental properties, agrees that housing has changed a lot.

“I only lived off campus one semester out of my eight.  This was partly because there weren’t many off campus apartments but also because the standard of living of students has changed,”  Jenkins said.

Jenkins also believes that the number of off-campus apartments are not a good thing.

“Students seem unwilling to live in the concrete block rooms we lived in.  It is sort of an arms race between the universities and communities to attract students.  I think they are trying to attract students by raising the prestige and attractiveness of living arrangements which is in turn driving up the cost of tuition.”

“Most of all it shows we don’t have enough on campus housing that so many almost resort like complexes can fill up,” Hays said.

Freshman Gage Adam weighs in with his thoughts on the issue.