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Whether you're living on- or off-campus, know what's on the line when you sign a housing contract or a lease. In both cases, you're agreeing to abide by a set of rules and if you're caught breaking them, consequences range from financial penalties to eviction.
Parents have a major stake in these contracts because in many cases the financial penalties fall on them if they are covering their child's bills or have co-signed off-campus leases. Many colleges require freshman to live on-campus, while sophomores and upper classmen are permitted to move off-campus. And if you live on-campus, you generally must purchase a meal plan, which in some cases can mean an additional contract or an addendum to the housing contract.
Contracts are no joke
While college students might not even be aware of the terms in their housing contracts or take them seriously, they are no joke to residential life staff, who grapple with issues from use of illegal drugs in dorm rooms to furniture theft from common areas, says Patrick Devine, assistant director of housing at Barry University, a Catholic liberal arts college in Miami Shores, Fla.
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"We have a whole set of fines for various infractions, which can range from damage to a room to a room lockout fee after a student has forgotten his or her key and already been let in a couple of times," he says. For serious infractions, such as drug use, Barry has a no-tolerance policy and will kick a student out of campus housing, he adds.
"Every campus I go to I hear stories about kids being thrown out of campus housing," says Harlan Cohen,
author of "The Naked Roommate: And 107 Other Issues You Might Run
Into in College." "If it's for something besides drugs or underage drinking, a kid might get a couple of
warnings, but kids are definitely being thrown out of housing and getting kicked out of school for that kind of stuff."
Don't miss deposit deadline
Housing costs are one of the largest components of college costs. When you enroll in a college, you -- or your parents -- must
send in a tuition deposit to hold your place. Within a couple of weeks of enrolling, many colleges will ask for a refundable
or non-refundable deposit to secure your spot in on-campus housing. Don't ignore the deadline, because at schools with a
shortage of housing, missing the housing deposit deadline can lock you out of campus housing or at least leave you with the
less desirable options.
If you change your mind after you pay your housing deposit, the terms of your housing contract determine
whether you will get any or all of your money back. Most contracts spell out dates by which you can get some money back; in
other cases, the deposit is non-refundable. If it is refundable, contact the residential life or housing office at your college
as soon as you know that you won't be going there to find out the procedure to request a refund.
Read the
fine print
While housing contracts vary among institutions, there
are common features.
"We go to a conference every year with all
of the schools in Florida and we share with each
other what we're doing and what the issues we're
dealing with, so our contract is pretty consistent
with that of other universities," says Devine.
Another common feature is how few students actually
read the contract, he says.
"Students will complain about being fined
for something, but I remind them that we tell
them to read the contract and that when they signed
it, they agreed to the terms in it," he says.
Here are some typical features of a housing contract:
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Occupancy. You agree to occupy the room and not to sublet it to others. |
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Right of entry. College officials have the right to enter your room with or without notice. |
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