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Housing Requirements & Exemptions
Apply for Housing
Request to Change Housing Assignment
Benefits of On-Campus Housing for Students

Apply for Housing

We are excited that you will be joining the Buffalo family! Applying for housing is easily done through your myHousing Portal, accessed through your BuffPortal. You must be admitted to the University prior to applying for housing. See below for details on the application process.

Learn More About Housing

Housing Agreement

The housing agreement is a contract and is valid for one academic year (fall and spring), unless a student begins in the spring semester. The agreement cannot be canceled mid-year while the student is enrolled (part-time or full-time).

New Students | Fall 2020-Spring 2021

*NOTE: You must be admitted to the University before you can apply for housing.

Application Start Dates:

Academic Year 2020-2021: Tuesday, October 1, 2019 at 12 p.m.
Spring ONLY 2021: Thursday, October 1, 2020 at 12 p.m.

Before you begin, you will need:

User name and password: If you have not activated your new student account, activate your account; your user name and password will be generated there.
Credit or debit card for $150 housing deposit

To apply for housing:

Login to the myBuff Portal using your username and password.
Choose the myHousing icon, located in the top right corner.
Select "Apply for Housing!" at the top of the screen.
Choose the term for which you are applying (i.e. Academic Year 2020-2021).
Pay the $150 housing deposit and follow the instructions to complete the application.

For information on when new students are able to select their rooms, visit our FAQ page.

Returning Students | Fall 2020-Spring 2021

*NOTE: Returning students must complete the reapplication process by May 1 or risk losing hall/room assignment, lose priority room selection as a returning student, and may have to pay an additional deposit and reapply for housing.

March 25-29: Reapply for the SAME room (or lose it) - visit myHousing in the myBuff Portal
March 30-April 1: Displaced students (students will receive an email if they are affected),
reapply for a NEW room or hall - visit myHousing in the myBuff Portal
April 2-May 1: Reapply for a NEW room or hall - visit myHousing in the myBuff Portal
March 25-May 1*: Moving off-campus, graduating or leaving WTAMU - visit the Office of Residential Living

*Keep in mind that if you fall under the University housing requirement, you may not qualify to move-off campus unless you are graduating or withdrawing. There are housing exemptions available for students who qualify; exemptions are considered but rarely granted. It is recommended that you sign-up for an on-campus room even though you apply for an exemption; if you are not approved for the exemption, you will at least have an on-campus room you WANT to be in. For more information regarding the housing requirement and exemptions, visit the Requirements page.

Winter Break Housing 2019

Winter Break Housing is only available to students currently living on campus. Winter Break Housing is included in the established housing rates, but students must sign up for it online; break housing does not include the “Closed-Campus” period when the University is closed for the Christmas/New Year’s holiday (see the University Calendar for details). Jarrett Hall is the only residence hall that offers housing during this period; students must live in Jarrett for the entire academic year to take advantage of this benefit.

To sign up, login to the MyBuff portal then click the myHousing icon.

December Break: December 13-20
- Must vacate the building no later than 10:00am on December 20.
- Must have a current (Fall) assignment to stay.
January Break: January 1-10
- Able to check in January 1 at 4:00pm.
- Must have a current (Fall) and a Spring assignment to stay.
Closed-Campus (CC) Housing: December 20-January 1
- Only available to CURRENT residents of Jarrett Hall.

Must have a current (Fall) and a Spring assignment to stay.

May / Summer 2020 Housing

Summer and Intersession housing applications typically open mid- to late- April. Students will receive notification in their WTAMU email when the application officially opens. While strongly encouraged, summer enrollment in courses is not required to live in on-campus housing.

May Intersession: May 8-29 (at 12pm)
- Founders Hall | $275 | To sign up, login to the MyBuff Portal then click the myHousing icon
Summer I: May 31-July 7 (at 12pm)
- Founders Hall | $550 | To sign up, login to the MyBuff Portal then click the myHousing icon
Summer II: July 7-August 13 (at 5pm)
- Founders Hall | $550 | To sign up, login to the MyBuff Portal then click the myHousing icon

Summer Meal Plan Options can be found on our Rates & Payments page.

How to Cancel Housing

All students who have completed less than 60 post-high school credit hours, or are under the age of 21 years of the first day of class of the semester of initial enrollment/re-enrollment (for each academic year), and are enrolled in twelve (12) or more hours are required to live in University residence halls or receive an approved exemption to the University Housing Requirement from the Office of Residential Living.

If you are a current resident (currently residing on-campus), you will need to complete the cancellation form at the Office of Residential Living. All others can follow these steps to submit a cancellation request:

Login to your BuffPortal and click on the myHousing icon. Once in your myHousing Portal, click on “Cancellation Request”:
- Complete all fields on the form, including “Additional Information” (i.e. exemption type you were approved for).
You will receive an email confirmation once your cancellation request is submitted. If you qualify for a cancellation, it takes 4-6 weeks for housing deposit refunds to be processed, assuming you owe no additional balance to the University.
- To qualify for a refund of the housing deposit, requests for cancellations must be received by the deadlines. If it is past the deadline, it is still imperative to request a cancellation to ensure you are not charged for housing.