College students: Ready to get out on your own?

Finding the perfect home away from home begins at West Virginia Universitys annual Off-Campus Housing Fair from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 10, in the Mountainlair ballrooms.

Brian Walker, community coordinator, said the event allows students to meet area landlords in an informal setting, view property listings and photos, and set up appointments to visit rental units.

If students cant make it to the fair, he encouraged them to stop by the Universitys Off-Campus Housing Office in Elizabeth Moore Hall on the Downtown Campus or log onto the Student Life Web site,www.studentlife.wvu.edu, and click onOff-Campus Housing.

There, students can search for properties by entering specific criterianumber of bedrooms, furnished or unfurnished and various amenitiesas well as access landlord and roommate resources as they search for off-campus accommodations.

Only landlords who have provided WVU s Off-Campus Housing Office with current letters of compliance from the City of Morgantown for their properties are listed on the Web site, Walker noted.

The authorization means the property has been inspected within the past three years and has been found to comply with the requirements of the citys rental housing code and other state building codes, he explained.

Students are advised to have their leases reviewed by WVU Student Legal Services, also located in Elizabeth Moore Hall, before signing them.