What's in Your College Housing Contract?

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.

"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:

Off-Campus Lease Details

Just like an on-campus housing contract, a lease for an off-campus apartment is a binding contract. Virtually all landlords will require your parents to co-sign the lease except for students who are supporting themselves with full time or near full-time jobs. Leases typically require damage deposits, although in competitive housing markets, those may be waived, says Julie Bonnin, senior vice president of student housing at Asset Campus Housing, a provider of off-campus housing in college markets.

Developments like those built by Asset Campus Housing usually offer furnished apartments and students are responsible for not damaging the furniture, fixtures, walls, common areas, etc. These developments also provide roommate-matching services. If you want to live in a more traditional apartment off-campus, you'll have to find your own roommate or roommates.

The University of Pittsburgh offers an apartment-leasing guide designed for college students who want to move off-campus. If you want to break your apartment lease, your landlord will be less likely to let you off the hook than the residential life office at your college, so be aware that you are liable for paying the rent for the entire duration of the lease.

Insure Your Belongings

Your campus housing contract and apartment lease will disclaim responsibility for the loss of any of your personal items, so you need to get housing or rental insurance. While your parents homeowners insurance may very well cover you while you're at college, make sure by calling the insurance company or checking the policy before you leave for school. The deductible may be so high that the theft or loss of your iPod or even your laptop may not be covered.

That's why insurance policies specifically designed for dorms are popular with students and their parents. For a premium of a couple of hundred dollars a year, your belongings are covered on campus and on foreign study or school sponsored trips, usually with a very low deductible of $25 or $50.

"Stuff gets stolen all the time out of dorm rooms," says Devine. "If you leave your door open, even if you're only going out for a few minutes, cell phones, iPods and laptops will get taken and 90 percent of the time it is someone living on your hall or someone who is visiting someone who is living on your hall."

To protect yourself from theft, loss and damage, it's important to have some type of insurance coverage, whether from a homeowners insurance or campus insurance policy.

Renters insurance will cover your belongings if you're renting an apartment.

Typical Housing Contract Features:

• Occupancy. You agree to occupy the room and not to sublet it to others.
  
• Right of entry. College officials have the right to enter your room with or without notice.
  
• Forbidden items. Forbidden items vary, but usually include candles, incense, halogen lamps and pets (except fish). Some schools forbid outside refrigerators or microwaves but will allow you to contract with an approved company for those items.
  
• Housing assignments. Most schools reserve the right to change your housing assignment for any reason. Devine says that he usually tries to keep a student on the same floor if he has to move a student because of someone moving out of on-campus housing, leaving school or getting expelled from housing.
  
• Damages. You agree to pay damages for not exercising reasonable care in the use of the room. You won't be charged for normal wear and tear but will be charged for damaging your room or the common areas. "If we can't determine who did damage to a common area, we will charge everyone on the floor," says Devine. "That will usually result in someone on the floor telling us who did the damage, because they don't want to be stuck paying for something they didn't do."
  
• School's responsibilities. The contract lays out the school's responsibilities, which include providing heat, water, electricity and other services.
• Termination of contract. Your housing can be terminated for not abiding by school housing policies. You may receive a refund or may not, depending on the terms of your contract and the reason you were expelled from your dorm.
• Business operation. Not all contracts contain these but some do, governing the operation of businesses out of a dorm room. Some forbid actual physical businesses and online businesses on college property.