How Do Frats Find Houses?

[boyyy]

Hey everyone,
My fraternity is relatively new on campus, and we are growing pretty rapidly. We are coming up with financial plans and projections for a house that we will raise money for in the next couple of years. I want to know how fraternities are able to find properties to buy? My school is in a rather urban area where land is scarce and property is in high demand low supply!

[Kevin]

You're part of a national fraternity, right? This is really a question you need to pose to your advisers or national officers. Different organizations have different tools to help out here.

[Tom Earp]

Looks like renting may be the answer for a while, just to have a place to call home!

Either that or asking the school to give you room in the Dorms for you only!

Please P M me as I know you do not want to put on site!

[JonInKC]

"Frats"?

Uh-huh. Right...

[modorney]

I don't know all your situation, but you probably won't get a house right away.

Reach out to your nearby alumni (both those from your chapter, as well as those
from other chapters.) Your national headquarters can give you a list.

Have a simple barbecue, or picnic, and invite them, so they can get to know them.

Keep in touch with them - an e-mail newsletter is cheap (free) and a printed one is not that expensive to mail.

Over time, have get togethers - like Monday Night Football at a sports bar. Sometimes they will
give you your own room. My nearby sports bar is run by an ATO alumnus and he knows exactly what I'm doing.

After they get to know you, and see you are going to last, ask them to help you down the path to owning your own house. Of course, your national will have staff who can advise you.

Sometimes you just get lucky, but you have to make your own luck. In a year, or so, you can organize an "official house finding committee". And if another fraternity or sorority makes a house available, either rental or ownership, you will be ready to jump.

In those situations, you will probably have competition, but the winner in that situation is usually the best prepared and organized.

[CaliAggie]

Yes, your nationals should be able to help you form a local or chapter-specific housing corporation. There are also consultancies that work specifically with Greek organizations on housing development, capital fundraising campaigns, alumni giving, etc.

I wouldn't worry too much about finding an actual house. From what I've seen, there's been an ongoing carousel of fraternities and sororities owning or renting the same structures on campus for decades now. When one group (fraternity, sorority, even an organization like Hillel or campus ministry) gets kicked off of campus or folds due to attrition or what have you, another group moves right in and takes its place.

[Tom Earp]

Originally Posted by boyyy

Hey everyone,
My fraternity is relatively new on campus, and we are growing pretty rapidly. We are coming up with financial plans and projections for a house that we will raise money for in the next couple of years. I want to know how fraternities are able to find properties to buy? My school is in a rather urban area where land is scarce and property is in high demand low supply!

While it was mention as a positive, there seems to be a rotation of Greeks who may be coming or going. Renting is a good possibility. What size is your chapter? Are the there chapters near you?

It doesn't need to be the biggest on the block!

[CaliAggie]

I didn't mean to make it sound like the rotating carousel was a positive thing, sorry. However, I do prefer to see available Greek housing going to new or waiting GLO's rather than being converted into university offices or dorms.