A very important topic: Living
Housing was a very big issue for me at the beginning, I didn't even know where to start. There is no student hall of residence at Westcliff University, so all students look for their own accommodation.
Airbnb
I decided to rent an Airbnb via Airbnb.com. I initially rented the room for a month to see what the location was like and whether the accommodation was suitable for me. The Airbnb was in Lake Forest, the area is very nice and a great residential area, but the distance to the university was too far. The Airbnb is paid in advance. https://de.airbnb.com/
Location
So I would recommend looking for an apartment near Irvine. I can highly recommend Newport and Huntington Beach, which are two very nice places right by the sea. But the areas around Costa Mesa, Irvine, Fountain Valley and Santa Ana are also recommended, as they are close to the university. As students generally only have to go to university 2-3 times a week, it is advisable to look at factors other than proximity to the university when looking for accommodation.
Furnished Finder
I found my second room via Furnished Finder https://www.furnishedfinder.com/ . On Furnished Finder, private individuals offer their furnished apartments for rent. Before I found my room, I looked at another room, but it was too small for me. To have an account there, you need an American telephone number. I found a much cheaper room there. I had two flatmates in the house, which is also the rule for many rooms. I paid my accommodation monthly to my landlord and also signed an English tenancy agreement. In my case, the landlord asked for a deposit of 500$, which I got back in the end.
Costs
Unfortunately, my Airbnb was very expensive. I paid €1,250 for the first month. I can also tell you about a friend who paid $1,300 for a room with a private bathroom in Costa Mesa, which he also found via Airbnb. At the beginning I also searched on Zillow.com, but unfortunately I didn't find anything concrete. In America, almost every room also has a private bathroom and in some cases a dressing area.
https://www.zillow.com/
