Resources

Housing Information and Resources

Below are a handful of resources to help assist grad students in a housing search. Once Campus Housing opens their housing applications (by term), they receive hundreds of applications within the first 24 hours. The longer the application has been open, the worse it is. Unfortunately obtaining a contract with Campus Housing is quite challenging, and they can have a very long waitlist (400+). Graduate and family housing is especially competitive on-campus as they have a limited number of spaces (* family waitlist applications can only be submitted by admitted students). As well, existing residents have the first opportunity to renew before they extend offers to applicants on the waitlist. 

For grad students looking for temporary housing until you can secure a rental, please check out the short term accommodations webpage, there are some local hotels listed that provide students with a special UW pricing (mainly for quarantining), however, students may get the same pricing for a non-covid related stay. 

Grad students are encouraged to review the Off-Campus Housing website as there are many helpful tips. 

Two other great resources for grad students are the Off Campus Community which is a WUSA service for first and upper-year students living off campus and the UWaterloo Student Apartment Subreddit, which can be quite useful for exploring options and accessing accommodation reviews.

** Please Note: The GSA has a Legal Aid services for graduate students, and students can inquire about rental disputes, leases, etc.

For housing disputes and other legal matters, full time and part time graduate students who have opted in also have access to the Legal Protection Program through StudentCare. 

There are also some external (tenant law) resources in the area such as Waterloo Region Community Legal Services and The Working Centre. One thing to note is that they are geared towards low-income individuals and families.

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