I'm a woman. I also understand statistics. >I understand your stats that we are more likely to get into a car accident than have a child abducted from their bed but do you think that Polly Klaas's parents would take comfort in those stats. So if it was your child you would just say wow, they had more of a chance being killed in a car accident than being abducted from home. That's insane thinking. If my kids died because they got a phenomenally rare form of cancer, I'd be devastated, but I wouldn't spend time obsessing about the possibilities of really rare cancers and wouldn't make sure I lived close to a great cancer center, just in case. Nor would I go around hysterically advising parents of the same if it DID happen. >The biggest risk from an unlocked window is burglary and a possible encounter with the burglar(s). That risk will vary greatly by location and time of day. The VAST majority of robberies are during the day--for a reason! If someone who knows you wants to kill you, having a bedroom on the second floor isn't going to help. And the vast majority of murders are of this type. If a stranger is interested in a crime of opportunity, there are many other things to think about before decided that having no first-floor bedrooms window is the solution. A stranger can enter just as easily through any other window and then CLIMB THE STAIRS. Windows can be broken, believe it or not, too. Want to block off all windows with bars? Then you're far more likely to die--from a fire! If you live in a bad neighborhood or a neighborhood with high "crime exposure," then you should have burglar alarms, lights, thorny plants, a dog, etc., before worrying about what floor your bedroom is on. Best advice for not getting murdered? Stay away from unstable people. Seriously. Be careful who you marry! And stay away from drugs, gangs, etc., and those who are involved in them. Don't work in a convenience store or gas station. or be a food delivery person. Don't live in the most crime-ridden neighborhoods, and don't walk through them, either. There. You've just taken out more than 98% of the risk of being killed.

I bought a newly built home in a small mountain town, surrounded by beautiful pine trees...it was supposed to be my retirement home. A month after moving in the neighbor began his repairing small engines. He brought everything and anything that was junk to his house and the "reving" drove me nuts. I couldn't enjoy gardening outside, not to mention the smell of burning gas/oil. He wasn't worth talking to, the type of person that doesn't get it regardless of the conversation. I silently went to the city and filled out a report on noise, use of air tool equipment, etc ....acted stupid, "are we allowed to have businesses in garages?". Already knew the answer was no. They shut him down in a day. Although the noise went away he was still doing something in his garage and had a stove that was being used to burn rubber, plastic, anything else including his trash and it would engulf my "new" home. Calling the fire department didn't work, he had a scanner and knew when they were on their way, by the time anyone showed up the smoke was shut down. Plus police/fire cannot go into a building without a warrant. The problem with this neighbor really never went away, he started another business cutting down trees which were brought back and laying all over. Used a huge power log cutter which went on for hours on end. I did decide to move, there were other reasons for doing so which I reasoned with to make the move something I should do. Persuing problems is a big issue if you want to sell. I could have continued documenting, calling, monitoring by the EPA, etc. But selling the house would have been a major problem if something showed up or illegal going on. Moving was the best thing I did, am in a quiet, wonderfully kept neighborhood. I hated letting the guy win, but life hands us plans which we don't understand at the time. I'm glad I made the final decision. "

Gardenwebber, that is SUCH a good point about "entertaining in their rooms". Here's a thought about your floorplan: have the kids take the back two bedrooms. Move your son to the smaller bedroom, the girls in the room with the closet. Take that wall that you guys put up and turn it into the bunk beds in separate rooms. This will give you a lot more useable floor space. Swing your youngest daughter's bed against the far wall and you will maximize the floor space there. Your son can have the lower bunk bed in his own room next door. That leaves the bedroom directly across from yours as a playroom. That also makes your own bedroom further away from the kids beds. The bunk beds are just drywalled with the mattress only on them. We have always had a rule that our kids cannot have a computer, video games or tv in their bedroom until they are 18. I do not want that stuff cluttering my downstairs living room. An upstairs space for this is the best solution. We built our current home knowing that we were going to have teens in them someday and to give them space separate from ours. Think about this solution. My husband would be happy to talk you and your husband thru the details if it is something you would be interested in. P.S. my 17y.o.'s boyfriend is coming for christmas for 17 days and there is no way in hell that she will be "entertaining" him in her bedroom!!!!!!!!!!!! Sherry

May Lee, I would put less weight on the opinions of the people here, and more into research on what off campus college rentals are like in your area. How large are the units, how large are the bedrooms, what are the rents per square foot being charged? Are rentals more commonly by the bedroom or for the entire unit? What is expected in kitchens and common areas? What sort of students choose to live in your neighborhoods? I would aim at attracting graduate students, as they are more likely to be focused on their studies, be quieter, cause less disturbances, and have a greater level of maturity, especially if the schools near you have programs in areas such as medical, law, or architecture. From my experience in being a college student at an urban campus within the last 10 years: 1. Almost all graduate students in most of the US choose to live off campus, unless they are international. Many undergraduate students if allowed would rather live off campus too, because on campus living often either means sharing a bedroom and a bathroom and very little privacy, or you or your parents have to spring for the overpriced on-campus apartment style units. Living off campus is almost always cheaper. 2. As a college student I would never rent a unit without appliances. Unless it's expected that I have my own mini-fridge, and then there has to be a place to put it. Honestly as an adult I would never rent a unit without appliances, but maybe that is a regional thing. In fact, don't allow a tenant to have a hot plate, or space heaters, or anything else that could be an electrical hazard. 3. Most college students that I knew, unless they were really tall had a twin bed or full size bed. Queen beds or larger are a pain to move around, which college students frequently do. I've also had many roughly 10x10 bedrooms and they have worked just fine. Sure, the bed either has to be in the corner or closer to the wall than usual, but only one person will be sleeping in there (another note, your lease should have limits on the number of nights that your tenants can have visitors). 4. That said, the bedrooms should absolutely be designed so that each can comfortably fit a desk in addition to a bed. If your closets are setup well enough, these rooms don't need to fit anything else large. A student might have a small bookshelf or dresser, but they likely won't come with too many clothes.Or if they do, they will need to find themselves a larger more expensive apartment (back to what I said above about knowing your local market). 5. If I am a student and I am on a budget, I will absolutely compromise for a smaller unit if that means that I can get it for less. I have lived in my share of studios and tiny bedrooms. If your space is actually a little smaller than the typical in your neighborhood, and you charge a little less for it, that may work to your advantage. 6. Your common area doesn't have to be huge. If it fits a table for 2 a sofa and a TV, you are all set. My experience with common areas and students is that they actually don't get used a ton. And making them larger just invites large gatherings, which may be disruptive to you upstairs. 7. Is the washer and dryer available to the renters to use as well. Having done it once, I would never again rent a unit without laundry in the building. No one wants to cart their clothes a few blocks to the local laundromat in the rain because that was the only day available to get it done. 8. A dishwasher is really nice to have, but I have rented many apartments both during and after college without them. This is another case where I would see what rentals in the neighborhood have. A couple thoughts on your latest plan: 1. The closet in bedroom 2 being 3' deep is just wasting space. I would make it a more standard 25-26" deep and give that space back to one of the bedrooms. 2. I would mirror the bathroom/closet design of bedroom 1 so that the closet is away from the door and can have a full width bifold door. That will make it more useful. 3. Rethink the shelf in bedroom #2. This should either be a small closet or cabinet facing out into the hall, or delete the stub wall next to it and make this a full height wider cabinet next to the vanity. 4. I second that the furnace as located in the garage is just asking to be hit and banged into, since it hangs out into the garage door. If you have a small car, are likely to always have a small car, and the average buyer in your city also has a small car I would make a dedicated utility closet at the end of one of the stalls, leaving the other side longer for larger vehicles. 5. Most importantly, I think the common area needs another revision. The kitchen is wasting space in the corner, and there isn't a great way to layout furniture in the rest of the space. Maybe there is a way to get the kitchen back on the wall by the stairs, except the refrigerator? I would do a 24" electric stove and 24" refrigerator/freezer combo with a 24"-30" lower cabinet for storage and workspace. If you don't have a dishwasher I would try to fit in a small double basin sink. Upper cabinets should be generous and extend to the ceiling if possible. Try to then get two opposite walls across from each other that are clear to place a sofa and TV.