The 500 to 800 calls that the UD Residential Properties receives monthly suggests that there is always something to be improved in the 638 living units located in the Ghetto, Darkside and Garden Apartments.

According to Dearlyn Rosenfelder, assistant director of Residential Services, about 2,400 UD students live in the area managed by Residential Properties. They employ 11 full-time staff members to respond to calls from houses that range in age from over 100 years to barely one year old.

One of the campus' oldest houses is located at 116 Chambers St. The house was built in 1886, according to Dayton property tax records. At the beginning of the year, there was sewage backup in its basement.

'We called maintenance and they sent Roto-Rooters,' said Tracie Johnson, junior electronics media major. 'They were very efficient and almost invisible.'

Johnson said the house has not had a problem since. She described moving into the Darkside 'as a hit-or-miss' and felt she got a hit with a laundry hook-up, air conditioning and a renovated bathroom. Every house in the Ghetto and Darkside has wireless Internet, which she said 'makes it easier.'

The most common maintenance requests include replacing light bulbs, servicing vacuums and unclogging drains. During Rosenfelder's nine years with the university, work on the houses has included tasks as small as fixing a lock to as big as replacing deteriorating drywall.

Ryan Siefring, fifth-year mechanical engineering and industrial engineering major, laughed when he said he has had bad luck with ceilings in all three of his university-owned houses. His junior year house at 104 Woodland Ave. began the streak.

'I was standing in the bathroom when the ceiling fell down from dry rot,' Siefring said. 'A group was touring the attic and the pressure caused it to cave under their feet.'

A bathtub leak in Siefring's senior year house caused another ceiling crack and this year his housemates found mold on the ceiling. But Siefring is happy with his current 5-year-old duplex, 437 Kiefaber St.

'Compared to others [houses], ours destroys all,' Siefring said.

His roommates agree that the luxury of having an air conditioner, washer, dryer and dishwasher is a perk. Siefring was energetic about his living situation, although he said it did not have flawless walls or as much lighting as he had imagined.

Rosenfelder said a house's features often depend upon the year in which it was built. If students point out renovations they would like to see done to the house, such as more lighting or closet space, Residential Properties assesses the situation based on urgency.

'We try to accommodate every need, but there are limits,' Rosenfelder said. 'We look at if it is feasible and the cost issue.'

Kat Shanks, class of '06, had roommates who utilized Residential Properties' willingness to update houses by requesting a new kitchen and bathroom before their move-in last year.

'My roommates took pictures before we left for the summer of what they wanted redone,' Shanks said. 'I don't know if it was on the schedule or not, but when we came back we had a renovated house.'

In addition to renovating houses, UD built new ones within the last two years. Rosenfelder mentioned 240 Kiefaber St. as one of the newest. Resident Jason Schafer, fifth-year accounting and finance major, said it is a step up from the house he lived in last year.

'We lived in 418 Lowes St., which was small and cold because of the venting,' Schaffer said. 'We called and our parents called because the cabinets were broken. Within a month, maintenance replaced the kitchen and cabinets.'

This year, Schaffer's house has the same luxuries 437 Kiefaber St. does, along with unique leather furniture. There were problems with the garbage disposal and washer, but maintenance responded to the calls within a day both times. Schaffer said they are always 'able to respond quickly and responsibly.'

Rosenfelder said she does not know of any specific plans to build new houses this summer. Over Christmas break, the maintenance staff will check all the houses' heat and pipes and repair some interior walls. They are currently working on repairing siding that was torn off by the wind.