It’s that time of year when students are starting to think about their plan for housing next year. You have probably already had a conversation or two with your student about the pros and cons of living on or off campus. The truth is, there are pros and cons to both but what’s most important is to consider what best fits your student, their needs, and your personal situation.
Navigating this conversation can often feel a little confusing so we wanted to give you a few considerations to hopefully help you get to the choice that best fits your student.
Cost
One of the first thoughts that came to mind is probably cost. We get it… living on campus can feel expensive. Just remember the cost of rent in Greeley is also high. Remember – living on campus means one all inclusive bill. That makes paying a lot easier and is also way more predictable than separate electric/gas/water/trash/etc.
Local Laws
The City of Greeley has Occupancy Standards for the number of occupants in a premise based on zoning. That means the days of squishing lots of friends into one house in order to keep rent down might not actually be allowed. For more information look here.
Trust
When you live on campus you are responsible for your contract, not your roommates too. When you live off campus, depending on your lease, you may be responsible for the full rent even if your roommate doesn’t pay up. Same with utilities – if they are separate from rent, someone must sign up for them and collect the money from roommates.
Privacy
A lot of students cite privacy as a reason for wanting to live off campus but then have roommates in their apartment off campus anyway. Living off campus doesn’t equal more privacy if you just fill your space with roommates.
Year Round Housing
UNC’s Housing and Residential Education provides year round housing just like off campus apartments will.
Community
On campus housing has a strong sense of community and the possibility to always meet new people.
Proximity
When you live on campus you are physically closer to all your classes. That matters when you oversleep from studying the night before.
Support
Campus provides 24/7 support in the residence halls for students when they need something.
This is really handy for parents too – especially when they are trying to contact
their student who might be taking a little too long to call them back!
In the end, the choice to live on or off is a personal one. But we hope you will
consider living on campus for your second, third, fourth, or even fifth year. Living
off campus can really seem appealing, but when you consider all the things that can
impact your experience – Living on is a pretty good deal!
