Meet the new off campus housing site!

  Finding off-campus housing is a challenge that many U of T students will face. When I looked for my first apartment after living in residence in first year, I looked at over a a dozen places, and almost fell for a scam in the process! Eventually I found a place with a great roommate, but it wasn't easy. It's hard to find a place that meets your needs, stays close to campus, and stays within your budget — but the new off campus housing website from Housing Services just made it all a bit easier!

So what can you do on the site? Access student-friendly rental ads. When I've looked for housing in the past, I've struggled to see through scams, and I've encountered landlords who didn't want to hear from any student tenants. The new site lets you see rental ads that are student-friendly, where the landlords placing the ads are interested in having students as tenants. The landlord registration and complaints process also lets U of T screen out rental scams. The ads are also student-friendly because of their proximity to campus, with housing options shown in Toronto, Scarborough, and Mississauga with average rents lower in cost than other housing.

Post adds for free. Have a great apartment with a room to fill? As a U of T student, you can post one free ad at any time to advertise a sublet or seek out a roommate to fill an empty space. Find roommates. The site also has a roommate finder service. You can create a profile describing yourself and your disposition, hobbies, and lifestyle to find a student roommate that works best with you. Sometimes, you find the perfect place — but it has one extra bedroom than you have roommates, or your roommate backs out, or you need to sublet your room over the summer. This service is a great solve for finding someone that will fit in to your place. Report issues through the complaints process. The site offers a landlord complaints process that lets you have recourse if you encounter issues with landlords found through the site; and in turn helps U of T filter out problematic landlords so that other students can be assured that the housing options they encounter on the site are reliable and student-friendly. Access tenant resources. The new site also houses extensive resources for students — and Housing Services continues to offer all kinds of offline resources, too, like housing fairs, conflicting coaching, workshops, one-on-one assistance, and more. Check out the Housing Services website. So check out the site, and let me know what you think in the comments! Looking for a place? Need a roommate? Housing Services has you covered. Check out the new Off Campus Housing website.