Looking for affordable summer housing without the hassle of a lease? Look no further than your local fraternity house.

At least half of the fraternities at Iowa State rent out rooms in their houses over the summer.

Stuart Sorrel, president of the Interfraternity Council, said the arrangement benefits both renters and the fraternities.

“It’s just some extra income for frats and gives people another option as opposed to living in apartments,” Sorrel said.

The cost to live in a fraternity house is about $75 to $100 per month, Sorrel said, which is competitively priced compared with rent for an apartment.

Cory Gruss, junior in journalism and mass communication and member of Delta Upsilon, said price is the main reason someone might choose to rent a room in a fraternity.

“It’s just really cheap and economical for most people,” Gruss said. “It stops people from the hassle of dealing with real estate people if they just need a lease for the summer.”

Janet Buckley, sophomore in art and design, lived in a fraternity house last summer. She said the low cost was a major factor in her decision to live there.

“It was cheap, that’s the reason I stayed there,” Buckley said. “I paid $350 for the entire summer.”

Gruss said most houses will provide renters with a bed, whether it is in their own room or in a shared, “cold-air” bedroom. Beyond that, he said renters at Delta Upsilon need to bring their own couch, TV, stereo or any other furnishings they might want.

Buckley said the accommodations were nice.

“I had this huge room to myself and I had my own bathroom,” she said.

“It was kind of like my own little apartment minus the kitchen,” she said.

Gruss agreed.

“We don’t consider ourselves a fraternity over the summer. It’s really an apartment,” he said.

Anyone can rent a room in a fraternity for the summer even if they aren’t part of the greek system. Women and men live together in the house, which Buckley said she wasn’t used to at first.

“The whole male-female thing was just kind of weird,” she said. “It was a little intimidating being a girl.”

She also said the atmosphere was a little less restrained than during the school year.

“It was awkward after living in the dorms because everyone was loud,” she said.

Sorrel said there would be a big difference in experiences between living in a substance-free house and living in one where drinking is permitted.

Buckley agreed and said in a substance-free house, “the house would be a lot cleaner and the people might be a little more down-to-earth.”

Despite the party atmosphere, Gruss said most people who stay in fraternities have work to do.

“Most of the guys and girls stay because they take classes or work,” Gruss said.

To rent a room, students should contact the house treasurer or summer house manager.

Terri Houston, faculty adviser for IFC, said renting a room in a fraternity is a sensible choice.

“It’s very reasonably priced,” Houston said. “The convenience of it to campus, the accessibility of what the fraternities have — to me it makes a lot of sense.”