The place I'm at now has given me the shortest commute I've ever had at a whopping 10 minutes. (15 if we catch all the red lights on the way) But prior to that, 30 was my norm and for a few years, I was stuck traveling for an hour each way. Half hour is pretty good for a commute and $300 for rent?!?!? Holy crap, I'm jealous. We pay just over $500 each for our place- and that's cheap around here!
Everyone has given good advice thus far, so the only thing I can add is to echo their sentiments and say that Nikolai made the best point of all- take photos of EVERYTHING. I didn't do that for one of my apartments and it caused such a pain in the ass that I was miserable for a few months while dealing with an asshole landlord. Also- communicate asap about anything going wrong- to roommates and to landlord- the sooner things get dealt with, the better. And make sure that you chat "ground rules" with roommates- communication, again, is key. Good luck!!