Any resident of New Orleans will agree that right now, one of the biggest problems facing the city is housing. Not only is there a severe problem getting FEMA trailers anywhere, the housing that is available has skyrocketed in price in the past seven months.
Housing Uptown is expensive and it, too, seems unlivable. A one-bedroom apartment for $1,000 a month? I’d rather not. The task of trying to find an apartment Uptown seems almost impossible.
I have lived in New Orleans for the past three years, with one year spent in Buddig, not exactly the Ritz Carlton of Loyola’s student housing, and in the last two years, I have moved exactly once every six months. With the number of different places I have lived in New Orleans, I could be considered an expert.
Out of the dorms and fresh on my own, I lived in an absolute dive, split with three other girls on Robert Street. Not the good part of Robert Street, the ghetto, drug dealing part of Robert Street. But when my fellow housemates turned out to be not-very-nice people, I was forced to move out and get a place of my own.
St. Charles Avenue was calling my name with a one-bedroom apartment, complete with 10 other tenants and a pool. It was like Melrose Place, New Orleans style, with all the drama and ten times the alcohol. Three chefs lived downstairs who worked at downtown restaurants. In other words, I gained ten pounds. After Hurricane Katrina, the roof collapsed and after only six months, I was packing up again.
The only thing I could find was a guest-house in the back of a Garden District home. By guest-house, I mean one room for the same price as my old place, minus a kitchen and 400 square feet. I live in a closet. The walls have started to close in, and I am running out of places to put my stuff.
Now I am planning on moving again at the end of the semester when my lease is up and into a situation I am not at all happy about.
My boyfriend and I have been dating for almost a year, and he just bought a house Uptown. I don’t like the idea, but living in sin is better than living in a cardboard box. We are not at all ready for this step, but after looking at a one-bedroom apartment for $750 a month on Annunciation Street the other day, across from an obvious crack den, I think this is my only option.
I called my mom to ask her if me moving in with my boyfriend is something she would consider allowing me to do. All she told me was, “Nicole, you’re an adult. I trust you to make the decision on your own.” What is she, crazy? Since when does 21-years-old constitute being an “adult?” Does this mean I have to get a job now too?
One thing I have learned from my apartment hopping is that New Orleans real estate is unique. There is probably no other city in the U.S. with as many slum lords as New Orleans. If you are looking for an apartment, send me an e-mail so I can say a prayer for you and your checking account.
Nicole Wroten can be reached at [email protected].
