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weston community center
Graduate & Family Housing:

Leasing Information

How to Get a White Course Apartment Lease

Undergraduate Students

Dunham, Garban, and Grubb Halls are single-student apartment buildings are reserved for undergraduate students. Undergraduate students interested in living at White Course can either select White Course Apartment through the LiveOn Housing Process and accept a Housing and Food Service (HFS) Contract. Students who already have accepted a HFS Contract can add their name to the White Course Apartment Housing Option Waitlist in eLiving to be considered for reassigned as space becomes available.

Leases are not be used for traditional undergraduate students - the HFS Contract will be updated to reflect "White Course Apartment".

For undergraduate housing, room rates are charged by a semester rate instead of a monthly rent charge. The Campus Meal Plan is optional for purchase. Students are responsible for purchasing a parking permit

Please contact the Housing Assignment Office with any questions about undergraduate housing/HFS Contracts.

Graduate Students and Students with Families

White Course Apartments offers two options for graduate students and students with families:

1. Single-Student Housing: Patterson Hall is a four-person single-student apartment building reserved for graduate students.

2. Family Housing: Several buildings offer one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, with both furnished and unfurnished units available. Graduate students and undergraduate students with families should refer to the following sections about the Leasing Process. Questions about the leasing process can be directed to the White Course Housing Office.

Step 1: Complete the Lease Application

The Lease Application is available online through eLiving for Family Housing and Graduate Single Students only.

Refer to the eligibility guidelines for determining which apartment(s) you are eligible to request. The University will use the eligibility guidelines to determine apartment availability. Your Penn State Access Account User ID (e.g., abc1234) and password are required to log in to eLiving.

By submitting the lease application, your name will be added to an Application Waitlist while your application is being reviewed to determine if a space is available. Lease applications are reviewed by staff every week.

If an apartment space becomes available, you will receive a White Course Apartment Lease offer through eLiving. While the University will make every effort to honor your requests, we cannot guarantee that housing will be available to all students who submit an application. 

Dependents: Any dependent(s) who will be living with you during the lease period will need to be included on the lease application. Prior to completing the lease application, you will need to setup each dependent's account through the University's Accounts Management system. The dependent's Penn State ID number will be created, which you can then indicate on the lease application.    

Waitlist Notification: If your lease application is received after all apartments have been rented, your name will be placed on a Lease Waitlist. Students on the Lease Waitlist will be emailed a lease offer only if an apartment becomes available during the requested rental period. You may contact the White Course Housing Office at any time to have your name removed from the Lease Waitlist. Being on the Lease Waitlist does not guarantee that a lease offer will be made.

Step 2: Review Terms, Conditions, and Regulations

All residents living in White Course Apartments with a lease are bound to follow the White Course Apartment Lease, Lease Supplement Information (listed below), Terms, Conditions, and Regulations (TCRs), and the Student Code of Conduct. Residents are fully responsible for any and all actions and/or misconduct by household members, guests, and visitors.

 

Lease Supplement Information

All members of the household must be listed on the primary tenant’s White Course Apartment Lease and are entitled to the same access to most family programs, services, and facilities. Official documentation of an individual's relationship with the primary tenant may be required. The primary tenant is responsible for submitting changes of household members through the term of the lease (such as additions, deletions, or changes) to the White Course Housing Office within ten (10) business days of the change. The primary tenant may check out an apartment key for each individual on the lease over the age of 10, up to the maximum occupancy of the apartment. No keys can be checked out for individuals who not listed on the primary tenant's lease.

All members of the household over the age of ten (10) are eligible to receive Penn State id+ Card or an affiliate ID card from the University's id+ Card Office. The majority of apartments have a card access security system that requires use of the Penn State id+ Card to gain access to the building; eligible tenants on the primary tenant's lease will be given such access.

Children under the age of ten (10) must be supervised at all times. Children over the age of ten (10) who violate policy, cause damage to the facility, or are not following the directions of staff members will be escorted home. Children and their parents will receive one warning and a second incident will result in a loss in the privilege to be unsupervised in the apartment community.

A variance to this policy may be submitted, in writing, to the Housing Assignment Office, for special circumstances.

Step 3: Accept Lease Agreement

If an apartment space becomes available, your lease application will be processed to offer a White Course Apartment Lease. An email will be sent to the address listed on your application, indicating a White Course Apartment lease offer has been made. Lease offers expire at the date and time noted on the offer, which is usually within seven days.

To accept the White Course Apartment Lease offer:

  • Login to eLiving

  • Under the "Graduate & Family Housing" icon, select Lease Acceptance link

  • Review the Tenant and Dependent/Family Info section

  • Click the "Preview Lease" button to view the lease terms. You are agreeing to abide by all terms listed in the lease.

  • Indicate your acknowledgment of the terms of the lease, then click the "Submit" button

  • You will then submit payment for the first month's rent and the $100 housing deposit, which can be paid with a credit card. The amount due is indicated on the lease offer. 

Step 4: Rent Payment

White Course Apartment rates are monthly rent amounts; single-student apartments are per person, per month; and family apartment rates are per month. All utilities are included in the rent amount. White Course Apartment residents are eligible to purchase a Campus Meal Plan, Commuter Meal Plan, or LionCash to eat in University Dining facilities. Parking is not included in the lease; residents will need to purchase a parking permit from Transportation Services.

View current rates for White Course Apartments

Apartment rent is posted to your LionPATH account on the first day of the month for each calendar month of the lease term. Rent must be paid in full by the bill due date indicated on the monthly billing statement. Payment can be made at the Office of the Bursar located in 103 Shields Building, or online using LionPATH. If your lease begins or ends in the middle of the month, you will be charged the daily rate for that month (calculated by multiplying the monthly rent by 12 months and dividing that annual amount by 365 days).

Accounts that are not paid in full by the due date may incur a late fee based on the balance due plus a $25.00 charge. The late fee is calculated by the Office of the Bursar, and the Housing Assignment Office will add the $25.00 late fee.

Residents who do not pay the rent by the due date are subject to receive a Notice to Quit eviction notice. The Notice to Quit provides the tenant 10-days to pay the outstanding rent charges, or vacate the premises.

Additional charges that may be applied:

  • Early arrival

  • Late departure

  • Core (door lock) change

  • Family apartment assignment change fee ($400)

Step 5: Move In & LiveOn

Residents are able to move in to the apartment on the start date indicated on the White Course Apartment Lease. Residents may request an earlier move-in date by contacting the Housing Operations Office at the Weston Community Center, but the University is not obligated to provide housing before the lease start date.

Residents who have a vehicle(s) are required to purchase a parking permit.

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Eligibility Guidelines

To be considered for a White Course Apartment lease, applicants must meet and maintain the following eligibility requirements:

  • The primary tenant (lease holder) must be a registered student at the University.

  • The primary tenant may NOT be employed by The Pennsylvania State University in any position which entitles such person to employment benefits other than wages, salary, or stipend.

Single Student Apartments

  • Leases for single-student apartments are available to graduate students and returning adults only. Graduate students are assigned to the identified graduate student building.

  • Undergraduate students interested in a single-student apartment in White Course Apartments will need to participate in the LiveOn Housing Process and can select White Course Apartment as an option. These residents will accept a Housing and Food Service (HFS) Contract and are restricted to the identified undergraduate student buildings.

Family Apartments

  • Family apartments are available to both undergraduate and graduate students who will have spouse/domestic partner and/or dependents permanently residing with them during their tenure at Penn State.

  • One-bedroom apartments are reserved exclusively for primary tenants who have a spouse/domestic partner and/or one child. Once all applicants have been satisfied, single graduate students will be considered for one-bedroom apartments if space permits (lease will only be available for one person, no additional tenants permitted on lease).

  • Two- and three-bedroom apartments are reserved exclusively for primary tenants who have a spouse/domestic partner and multiple family members.

  • Family members are defined as follows:

    • Dependent children (under 18 years of age) of the primary tenant. Children over the age of 18 are considered adults. If the primary tenant has a dependent child over the age of 18 living with them, the primary tenant must provide written verification of legal dependent status (such as a recent income tax filing).

    • Custodial children (under 18 years of age) of the primary tenant or custodial children (under 18 years of age) of the primary tenant's spouse/domestic partner.

  • Single students cannot reside in family apartments with other single students.

Occupancy:

Occupancy guidelines for the family apartments are as follows:

  • One-bedroom apartments: limit of three occupants for families; limit of one occupant for single student

  • Two-bedroom apartments: limit of five occupants

  • Three-bedroom apartments: limit of six occupants

If the primary tenant is requesting a larger space than necessary (for example, a two-bedroom for three occupants), the request will be held until all other eligible families have been allocated a space. Tenants requesting a larger apartment who do not have children will not be considered until families with children have been assigned.

If a tenant exceeds the occupancy limits of an apartment, the tenant will be considered for reassignment to an available apartment only as space permits.

Lease Offer Prioritization

Current White Course Apartment tenants have priority to renew their lease for the same apartment for the next leasing period. Once the deadline has passed for the tenant to renew, the apartment space is then available for the University to assign new tenants or tenants requesting a different apartment. Current tenants who request to renew AFTER the deadline date are not guaranteed to be able to stay in the space apartment.

Graduate student applicants new to the University have second priority for receiving a White Course Apartment lease for available apartment space. Graduate students who currently live off campus will then be considered if there is space remaining.

Lease offers for White Course Family Apartments are made in this priority order:

  1. Primary tenants with dependent or custodial children under the age of 18.

  2. Primary tenants with spouses/domestic partners and no children.

  3. Primary tenants with other eligible immediate family members.

  4. Primary tenants with other types of members, as defined below, cannot be considered for a space on campus until students with families as identified in steps 1-3 have been processed, and then only if there is space available.

    • Parents of the primary tenant or parents of the primary tenant's spouse/domestic partner.

    • Grandparents of the primary tenant or grandparents of the primary tenant's spouse/domestic partner.

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Lease Release Requests

The White Course Apartment Lease is a legally-binding contract between the University and the tenant. Once accepted, the tenant is bound by the lease agreement and Terms, Conditions, and Regulations (TCRs) for the entire length of the lease agreement.

In rare circumstances, the University will release a tenant from the lease obligation. Tenants will not be released from the lease obligation if the tenant is registered as a Penn State student. A Lease Agreement Release Request (PDF file) must be completed for consideration and will be reviewed by a committee.