Finding a Home
One of the first steps in your journey to Waco is figuring out where you will be living once you get here. The cost of living in Waco is low so you have plenty of housing opportunities depending on what you want. Thankfully, we have plenty of grad students with experience finding a place in both rental and housing markets.
Short-Term Sublease with AirBnB
If you need time to look for an apartment or house in Waco or cannot come to Waco until the semester starts, AirBnB is a great option for a short-term rental. AirBnB will offer monthly rates if you are looking to stay for 1 month or more. Currently, AirBnB has monthly rates starting at $515-$650 depending on how many months you are looking to stay. If you want to choose this option, we recommend booking an AirBnB as soon as possible as location availability is on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Connect with a Grad
If you are interested in having a roommate, look no further than within your own department. We’ve compiled a list of current graduate students who love where they live and have an extra room. This is a great way to make connections and get established!
Finding a Rental
Due to Baylor’s increasing student population, there are a lot of rental options currently available with more in development.
Finding an Apartment
In general, if you want to see all of your options for furnished and unfurnished apartments, we recommend the following websites.
Bear Cribs
“Bear Cribs is Baylor’s most popular apartment resource and helps thousands of Waco students find rental housing every year.”
Apartments.com
Apartments.com is a great option if you are interested in finding a rental in Waco that is further away from Baylor’s campus or in one of the surrounding suburbs/cities such as Woodway, China Springs, Robinson, Hewitt, etc.
Furnished Apartments
If you are looking for a fully furnished apartment, there are several new apartment complexes close to Baylor:
- The View on 10th
- U Pointe on Speight
- Park Place Waco
- The Domain
- Oso Verde
Apartments like these come fully furnished and have a lot of amenities (24-hr gym, pool, etc.), but tend to have a lot of undergraduates who can occasionally be loud. If the occasional noise is no issue, this may be a great option for you if you do not want to move a lot of furniture to Waco.
If noise is an issue, we recommend finding a furnished apartment a little further from campus as undergraduates tend to stick close to Baylor.
Grad Student Only Housing
Baylor does offer graduate student-only housing close to campus. These include:
- The Quadrangle
- Browning Square
These apartments are privately managed by Brother’s Management. Previous grad students have run into some issues with management at these apartments, but they are an option if you wish to avoid undergraduates. Spots fill up fast so make sure to apply as soon as possible if you are interested in this option.
Buying a House: Navigating the Waco Realty Market
If you are looking for a more permanent option, buying a house is a great option. Several grad students have chosen this route for numerous reasons such as escaping the rent trap, having an income property, etc.
Guide to Buying a House in Waco
You are in luck because one of our lovely grad students who just recently bought a house wrote for us and you a lovely guide to buying a house in Waco. It includes the pros and cons of house ownership, general things to consider, and a general outline of the homebuying process.
Housing Markets of Interest
Waco – Many houses are outfitted for undergrads and they can be very expensive, especially close to Cameron Park.
Hewitt – Houses built more recently and you can get a bigger house for less money. However, water can be more expensive (Hewitt buys water from Waco) and it is generally 15 minutes from campus.
Robinson – Great school district, but the houses tend to be older and smaller.
Bellmead – North of Waco with older and smaller houses that tend to be fixer uppers.
More expensive options – Woodway (many faculty live here) and China Springs