With so many choices at hand, it's never easy for MSU students to decide where to settle next year.
The MSU Housing Fair, which will kick off at noon on Thursday at the Union, might help make students' lives a little easier, offering a look at a wide range of on- and off-campus housing options.
The four-hour event will be held on the second floor of the Union and feature property owners from East Lansing and the surrounding area, University Housing, local vendors, utility companies and campus organizations.
"It's designed to give students information about all the possible options they might have available to them both on- and off-campus," said Ginny Haas, director of MSU Community Relations. "Information that'll help them make intelligent decisions."
Sponsored by MSU, Student Life, Community Relations and The State News, this year's fair will be the third since the first fair in 2002, that about 1,000 students attended.
Last year's fair drew about 2,500 students, and the fair organizers are aiming for 4,000 students this year, Housing Fair Coordinator Ashleigh Miller said.
"It's a very successful event," Haas said. "It's getting bigger with more information."
Although the participants will be on hand to give out information and answer questions, students won't be allowed to sign any leases during the fair, Haas said.
"That's because it's to help students get a sense of what all the options are and make educated decisions," she said.
In previous years, some off-campus property owners grabbed students' attention with miniature models of apartment interiors, Miller said.
The University Housing representatives will continue to focus on the convenience of living on campus, said Ronald Smith, complex manager of Owen and Van Hoosen halls.
However, some students said they don't feel like the fair would help in choosing a new place to live.
"I don't think it'll give me enough information to change my mind," said Nick Scott, a telecommunication, information studies and media sophomore.
Scott said he'll keep living on campus because of the cost of living off campus.
Meanwhile, advertising senior Matt Zahn said he stayed in a house for another year, even though he didn't like the arrangements because of his lack of information.
"It's a good idea," he said. "It gives a better opportunity to get out there and find a place you want to live."
