When you arrive and pick up the keys to your new home, University Apartments staff will provide you with details about the community, local stores, and other basic information. Typically, this check-in process takes 20-30 minutes. If you are moving in after the office is closed, a Resident Manager will be able to issue you a single key, and you will finish checking in on the next business day.
Lease periods for Eagle Heights and University Houses are from July 1 – June 30. Lease periods for Harvey Street apartments are from June 1 to May 31st.
We have several different options of apartments in our neighborhoods at different rates. See below to see if you meet the criteria to be considered for a specific apartment type.
Have a Question?
Learn More
This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.
1 Bedroom/1 Bathroom
Available in all University Apartments neighborhoods. Eligibility and criteria for renting this apartment type in each community is listed below.
- Eagle Heights: Open to couples without children, families of 3 or less, and singles without a roommate
- Harvey Street: Open to singles without a roommate
- University Houses: Open to couples without children, families of 3 or less, and singles without a roommate
2 Bedroom/1 Bathroom
Available in all University Apartments neighborhoods. Eligibility and criteria for renting this apartment type in each community is listed below.
- Eagle Heights: Open to families with children, couples without children, families of 5 or less, and singles with or without a roommate
- Harvey Street: Open to singles with or without a roommate
- University Houses: Open to families with children, couples without children, families of 6 or less, and singles with or without a roommate
3 Bedroom/1 Bathroom Townhouse and 2 Flats
Available in Eagle Heights and University Houses. Eligibility and criteria for renting this apartment type in each community is listed below.
- Eagle Heights: Open to families with 2 or more children and families of 7 or less
- University Houses: Open to families with 2 or more children and families of 8 or less
Large 3 Bedroom/1 or 1 1/2 Bathroom(s) Apartments and Townhouses
Available in Eagle Heights. Eligibility and criteria for renting this apartment type listed below.
- Open to families with 2 or more children and families of 8 or less
Procedure
When you are offered an apartment, you must complete a lease acceptance form online before the due date included in the offer. You and your spouse, domestic partner, or roommate must complete the online form and an security advance payment must be received via CashNet or mailed in to the Division of University Housing’s cashier’s office. A lease is not valid without payment of the security advance payment.
Rent begins on the first day of your lease term and is payable on a monthly basis to the Cashier’s Office. Cashier’s Office is open Monday-Friday: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm.
If you are not in the United States and are not able to make an online payment of your security advance payment, contact the University Apartment Office to make arrangements to pay when you arrive. If your plans change and you will not be accepting the lease offer, please contact the University Apartments Office immediately.
Roommates
We define a roommate as an adult who lives with another adult in a household that does not meet the lease definition of a “family” household member. Each roommate must have an eligible UW affiliation. Roommates must be separately evaluated and approved by staff prior to moving in to an apartment. Each roommate is jointly liable for the terms and conditions of the lease and the full amount of rent due. If one roommate is released from the lease, the remaining roommate shall continue to be responsible for the full rent due.
Important Documents/Forms for Roommates
Transfers
Current University Apartments residents who wish to move from one neighborhood to another or to a different apartment unit within the same neighborhood must apply for a transfer in your My UW Housing portal. Requests for transfers that are very specific in terms of location may take longer to fulfill. There is a $500 administrative fee for all non-mandatory transfers or a $100 administrative fee for mandatory transfers due to Household size changes or Length of Occupancy concerns. Transfers will not be approved for residents who have past-due accounts. Transfer approvals are contingents upon the results of a required pest control inspection of the applicant’s current apartment. Damage and cleaning charge, if any, are assessed separately.
Transfers are categorized as one of three types:
- Convenience: transfers that are not required by University Apartments to remain in compliance with a lease. Convenience transfers are handled like a new application for an apartment.
- Priority: transfers due to medical issues, emergencies, or renovations/remodeling that are approved by University Apartments staff.
- Mandatory: transfers initiated by University Apartments staff due to renovations/remodeling, major physical damage, or families whose size may not allow them to remain eligible due to lease occupancy limitations.
Important Documents/Forms for Transfers
Guidelines for Subleasing Your Apartment
University Apartments residents are permitted to sublet their apartments to other eligible individual(s) for a maximum period of six months with written consent from the University Apartments leasing office. All sublets must be approved, in advance, by the Leasing Coordinator or Director of Leasing. Please explore our whole policy for all the guidelines.
Important Documents/Form for Subleasing and Domestic Partnership
Apartment Offers
An apartment will be offered at least 30 days prior to the beginning of a lease. In most cases, apartments are offered 60 days in advance. Outside of the summer, apartments are occasionally available with little to no wait. If an offer is accepted, the applicant must move in to the apartment no later than 30 days after the start date of the lease. Failure to meet this requirement may result in the termination of a lease.
Applicants who reject a total of two apartment offers for their desired occupancy date will lose their original application date priority. Applicants that fail to respond to two apartment offers will have their applications moved to the bottom of the waiting list.
Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals
Service Animals as defined by the federal regulations implementing the Americans with Disabilities Act, 28 C.F.R.s 35.104 or the Wisconsin Open Housing Law, Wis. Stats.s.106.50 may reside or visit in University Apartments without limitations. We do ask that residents with a Service Animal in their household notify the Leasing Office.
Applicants and residents requesting an Emotional Support Animal (ESA) should contact the Leasing Office at Leasing@housing.wisc.edu. Leasing staff will provide information directing the resident to the appropriate campus office authorized to review and approve the ESA request.
Residents are not permitted to have an ESA in University Housing prior to approval. If not approved, the animal is not considered an ESA and is therefore subject to the terms and consequences of the housing contract.
If an ESA is approved, Housing staff will arrange a meeting with the resident to carefully review the resident’s responsibilities pertaining to having an ESA in University Apartments.
Lead Paint
In accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) we are required to inform new residents of any lead-based hazards in your prospective apartment. Federal guidelines require a new resident’s signature acknowledging they have received this information. New residents should check the “Resident’s Acknowledgement and Certification of Accuracy” on their lease acceptance form.