Steve Imel is in search of a few good tenants.
Imel, who rents out a house near Ball State University, saidthis year has proven harder than others in finding renters.
"I've had problems before, but not like this, where I can't getit rented," he said.
Imel is not alone. Several landlords say they are seeing morefor sale signs than in previous years.
Larry Miller, who rents two properties, said he has not foundstudent renters for this year either, despite recently renovatingone of his houses.
Joyce Weaver said she has not had problems finding students buthas noticed more signs up.
Although landlords can agree there is a problem, they givedifferent sources for the root of the problem.
Miller said several factors affected the increased empty houses;one factor was newer apartment complexes, such as WindermerePlace.
Windermere, which opened this year, has 216 apartments andthree-fourths of them are occupied, Audra Wise, Windermere Placemanager, said.
The apartment complex offers rooms that come with furniture, awasher, a dryer, paid Internet and cable service, access to a gym,tanning beds, game room and other amenities. The extras make theaverage-$390 rent affordable to students, Wise said.
"It's just a major bonus," she said. "Instead of going andspending 40 bucks at a tanning salon and 40 bucks at a gym,students can get that all here."
However, the extras have caused more students to turn away fromrenting houses near campus, Miller said.
"A lot of college kids expect more, I've been told," Millersaid. "They're more affluent."
Despite the extras Windermere offers, houses still have somebenefits, Imel said.
"If you're looking for a quiet place... the house is the way togo," Imel said.
People do not place all blame on complexes like Windermere,though.
Miller also said while some college students are attracted tonicer apartment complexes, some are attracted to beat-uphouses.
"Some kids like them because it's something they can tear up,"Miller said.
Weaver said absentee landlords are to blame because they lettheir houses fall into disrepair. Places like Windermere can thenattract students because they would rather pay more for bettercare, she said.
Jim Merchant, who has owned eight properties for about a year,said landlords just don't put their properties up for rent soonenough.
Merchant started finding tenants for his houses last Novemberand had no problems, he said.
Landlords have started finding other ways to bring intenants.
Some have started renting houses to families for a lower rate,Miller said. Houses usually have a rent based on the number ofbedrooms. If a house has three bedrooms, a landlord could charge$250 a month for each roommate, earning a total of $750 a month.Most families can find houses for rent cheaper in other areas ofMuncie, Miller said, so some landlords will lower the rent to about$500 a month.
One family agreed to pay the full rent for Miller's renovatedhouse, though, because it was cleaner than the other houses in thearea, he said.
Weaver said she uses features like a refrigerator, a washer, adryer and a dishwasher, plus quick service to entice students.
"We spend an awful lot on our houses," Weaver said. "The otherthing is... we're there in 10 to 15 minutes to take care ofthings."
Several students have complained to Weaver about past landlordswho took weeks to months to respond to complaints, she said.
Despite landlords finding ways to attract more students, anordinance in the city council banning on-street parking on somestreets in the Riverside neighborhood could further hurt landlordsif passed, Miller said.
"They would kill us; they would run us out of business," Millersaid.
One of Miller's houses does not have any off-street parking, hesaid.
Whatever the decision, Miller plans to sell his properties, hesaid.
"I'm frustrated," he said. "I'm getting out of thebusiness."
Though Miller said his problems in finding renters was the mainfactor in his decision, Imel said he knew of several landlords whowere selling their property because of that reason.
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