Apartment hunting in the city is easyish if you have the right help. There were two things I was pretty stubborn about when I was looking: price and location. Oh and I knew I absolutely needed to live by myself without a roommate. This always surprises people for some reason.

When I was a freshman in college I had my own room, and while it wasn’t the best for optimal socialization, I absolutely loved it. I needed that alone time. I couldn’t imagine living in a room with someone ALL THE TIME. Simply not something that would’ve worked for me. However, I totally understand wanting to have a roommate. Sophomore-Senior year of college I lived in an apartment with one girl and we each had our own bathroom and bedroom. It was great since we had our own space, but even still I knew that I would do well in my own place. Well, the time has finally come! In late March I signed a lease for a convertible unit in Streeterville.

The process for finding the unit was relatively stress-free. I looked at 7 buildings with my real estate agent overall during the three weeks I was searching, and a lot of them were studios over my price range. It is amazing to me that so many buildings in good locations can be so expensive for a tiny space. At least I’m not living in New York. There were several buildings that had a lot of good qualities but lacked others. There was a great one bedroom in Streeterville that had a lot of space, but the building was old and the view was of another building right up in the window. It lacked sun as well, so while it was great spatially it wasn’t the right fit. I looked at another studio in the Gold Coast that had a ton of sun, but the building felt tired and it was carpeted, which isn’t great for someone with allergies (me). After looking at all of those units, I knew nothing really struck me as “home” but there were some contenders at least.

My sister was home for spring break when we decided to look at one last apartment. The location was right across from Ohio Street Beach in Streeterville, and coincidentally across from the building my parents lived in when they were in their 20s. Upon entering the building I had good vibes- I could feel that something was going to work out. We met with the leasing agent and he showed us around the units. I had an option between a convertible and a studio, both around the same price. The convertible had less of a view which was why it was cheaper, but once I saw the space difference I knew the convertible was for me. The sun that let into the unit was incredible, and it was perfect for one. I knew pretty quickly that this was going to be my new home, and I hadn’t even seen the amenities yet.

Ignore the pictures of the cow as this is a premodeled unit, keeping in mind that I will be picking out all of my own furniture. Regardless, the cow is kind of cute. After we got a tour of the 360 skydeck, indoor pool, gym and sauna rooms, the deal was sealed for me. There were two things that I would have liked, in unit washer and dryer and a full lake view, but those are two things I can compromise on. There were other things that outweighed those: the location was perfect, the unit was sizable and in my budget, and the building was modern with a 24 hour security attendant. That same day I applied for the unit and was approved the following day. I realized soon after that there was another sign that this was perfect for me because the unit number is a combination of two numbers with great significance in my life. I’m always someone who’s believed in signs.

Now that everything is ready to go contract wise, I am focusing my time (and money) on prepping the apartment and getting everything together that I need. I move in in less than a month! So much to do, but thankfully I have a lot of furniture ready to go. When my family moved out of our house in the suburbs, we saved a ton of furniture in a storage unit that I get to use in my new place. I’m lucky that my mom has great taste and what we have available will fit beautifully with my Moroccan theme. I can’t wait to show final pictures once everything is set up. The apartment hunt came together so nicely and I can’t wait to be living on my own. It will definitely be weird to be without my family all the time, but I think back to college when I lived on my own and I truly loved that. I think gaining back some independence will be good for me, and I can continue to work on happiness throughout 2018.