Family Members - Frequently Asked Questions
1.Can Off Campus Life recommend a place to live off campus?
2.How do I find a place that is safe for my student to live?
3.Does my student need a car for transportation in Gainesville?
4.How does my student find a roommate?
5.What happens if my student does not get along with their roommate?
6.What type of support and services does off campus life provide to my student?
7.What happens if there is a hurricane or an emergency and where will my student go?
8.What should my student do if they have any legal issues?
9.How can my student sublease their apartment?
10.I am thinking about purchasing a house or condo; what do I need to know?
1-Can Off Campus Life recommend a place to live off campus?
Off Campus Life can provide students, faculty, staff and student's family members with resources to find off campus housing and the education necessary to locate the right housing for your student. We do not recommend housing or make referrals for housing off campus. It is important to determine your budget and needs for housing off campus including location, amenities, etc in order for you to determine the right off campus housing fit.
Some great resources to find off campus housing include:
Friends or Other Off Campus Students - Sometimes the best source of advice and information about housing in Gainesville is friends and classmates who have lived off campus. Other students who have experience living off campus can share information about their experience and maybe provide some ideas on good places to live.
Locator Services - The Office of Off Campus Life has its own locator service that you can use (www.offcampushousing.dso.ufl.edu). There you can rent or sublet your residence, buy or sell furniture, and find roommates. There are also a number of message boards that you can post to as well as a list resources for off campus students.
Local Newspapers - The Gainesville Sun , a local Gainesville newspaper, list apartments, houses, duplexes, and townhouses that are for rent in the classifieds each day. The Alligator, a local newspaper focusing on student issues, also contains classifieds that list rental properties.
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2-How do I find a place that is safe for my student to live?
It is important before your student signs a lease to check crime statistics for the neighborhood or complex. To get crime statistics you can contact the local law enforcement. Within the City of Gainesville you will contact the Gainesville Police Department www.gainesvillepd.org or the Alachua County Sheriffs Office at http://www.alachuasheriff.org.
Another resource is the Voluntary Inspection Program which is a list of apartment complexes that have passed a basic safety inspection that is provided by local law enforcement. For more details visit the University Police Department website http://www.police.ufl.edu/csd/csd_rip.asp.
A great service on campus is SNAP - Student Nighttime Auxiliary Patrol SNAP provides nightly escorts anywhere on campus to persons on request. The service is staffed by students equipped and supervised by the university police department. Escorts are routed on foot and driven trips. A person requesting an escort may contact SNAP via telephone at 392-SNAP (92-7627). The requester provides their first name, location of pick-up and destination to the dispatcher who determines the best method of meeting the requester's need. A walking or driving escort is dispatched, to their location.
Also please utilize the safety tips that are listed in the Gator Guide to Off Campus Life.
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3-Does my student need a car for transportation in Gainesville?
What's GREAT about Gainesville and UF is the amount of transportation options available to our students. The local bus system RTS (Regional Transit System) http://www.go-rts.com provides free bus service for all UF students, faculty and staff throughout the City of Gainesville and UF campus. Most neighborhoods and apartment complexes are located on the bus route or within a short walking distance to a bus stop.
Another great mode of transportation is biking or walking. Gainesville is a very bike friendly city with biking routes throughout campus and the city and even several state and city parks with biking trails.
Students who live off campus can park on campus but are required to purchase a parking decal for cars, motorcycles and scooters. Most parking for students living off campus is on the exterior of campus and a bus does run between parking areas and the interior of campus. For more details on parking decals and a parking map please visit UF's Transportation and Parking Services www.parking.ufl.edu.
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4-How does my student find a roommate?
Does your student have any friends at UF or know anyone in the area? Ask around and see if anyone is looking for a roommate.
Another resource for finding roommates is through the apartment complexes off campus. Most of the complexes will place you in an apartment with roommates. It is good to ask how the management matches residents. Some will simply place students in the next available open apartment and other complexes will use a preference survey and attempt to match your student with roommates with a similar lifestyle. There is a better chance of roommate compatibility with those complexes that attempt to match versus random placement.
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5-What happens if my student does not get along with their roommate?
Communicate from the beginning to avoid issues. If your student has attempted to communicate and that is not working then I would talk with the landlord or apartment complex management to see if they are willing to mediate or provide another apartment for your student to move into. Your student has signed a lease which is a binding contract so if a move is not an option they might be required to stay in the apartment or find a sublease. A sublease often needs to be approved by the apartment complex management, landlord, and sometimes all roommates involved. So a good question to ask before signing a lease is what are the policies for subleasing your apartment.
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6-What type of support and services does off campus life provide to my student?
We provide education through the Gator Guide to Off-Campus Life on varying topics including how to keep your electric costs down, safety tips, renters insurance, and much more.
Off Campus Life also provide educational program throughout the academic year. Please visit the Off Campus Life Website for details.
Off Campus Life also provides the answers to questions and referral to services for any of your off campus questions including couch removal, roommate concerns, neighbor concerns, tenant rights & responsibilities and much more.
Off Campus Life also participates in and attends several city meetings to help stay in touch with issues and initiatives that might impact the student population. Through this forum Off Campus Life advocates for UF students living off campus.
Off Campus Life facilitates the Community Advocates Program which is an opportunity for students living off campus to learn more about their community and give back by sharing their knowledge with their neighbors through educational programming. For more details on the Community Advocates Program please click here.
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7-What happens if there is a hurricane or an emergency and where will my student go?
It is important for students to be aware of local news reports either by reading the local newspaper, watching the local TV news, or visiting the UF website on a daily basis. If there is an emergency on campus or within the community including any school closings or weather emergencies current information will be available on the UF website www.ufl.edu. If there is no electricity students and family members can also call the UF information line at 1-866-833-2287.
In there is a weather emergency UF will open shelters on campus where off campus students can evacuate to if necessary. The information on shelter openings including location and times of availability will be available through the UF website.
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8-What should my student do if they have any legal issues?
Student Legal Services is located on the third floor of the Reitz Union. They provide free legal service for full time UF students. Please visit their website or call 352-392-LAWS for more details.
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9-How can my student sublease their apartment?
A sublease often needs to be approved by the apartment complex management, landlord, and sometimes all roommates involved. So a good question to ask before signing a lease is what are the policies for subleasing your apartment.
Please keep in mind there is no guarantee that a student will be able to sublease their apartment. Some resources that will help your student to find a person to sublease include asking friends, classifieds in the local student paper, or the Off Campus Housing Locator. On this link students can list an apartment for sublease and follow up with anyone that has an interest.
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10-I am thinking about purchasing a house or condo; what do I need to know?
Before you even begin your search you should know about some city codes that effect rental properties. In Gainesville houses and condo's for rent must purchase a yearly landlord permit which costs $177. This permit allows landlords to rent their property. Another city code to consider is occupancy. Single family houses within the university context area can have no more than three unrelated tenants. So if you are thinking about buying a four bedroom house or considering the cost for rent based on a mortgage you should consider the city code that limits occupancy. For more information about the landlord permit visit the Code Enforcement website.
Another thing to consider before you purchase a house to rent is the neighborhood. Check crime statistics in the area by contacting the local law enforcement. Within the City of Gainesville you will contact the Gainesville Police Department www.gainesvillepd.org or the Alachua County Sheriffs Office at http://www.alachuasheriff.org.
It is also important to meet the potential neighbors and walk or drive around the neighborhood where you are looking to purchase a home. Are the neighbors open to having student neighbors? These are all things to consider before purchasing a house. Keep in mind a student who goes to bed at 4am might have a different lifestyle than a retired grandmother. They can make good neighbors but it is important to talk with your students and tenants about local city codes and Florida state statutes and what it means to be part of a community. Communication is key. Get to know your neighbors and be aware that you are living in a community and compromise is often integral to the development of positive neighbor relationships. The Gator Guide to Off Campus Life has more information about city codes that relate to students living in rental houses.
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