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Types of Accommodations

Information on Student Accommodations

Units available to students are either furnished or unfurnished. All accommodations contain a stove and a refrigerator.

With regard to furnished accommodations, each bedroom typically includes a desk, chair, dresser and lamp and a twin-long bed (39"x80") or a full size bed (54"x75") for couples. The living rooms and kitchens in apartments also include a couch, additional chairs and a table with chairs.  Furnishings may vary based on the different apartment/room sizes and layouts.

UAH does not provide linens, cooking utensils, dishes, cutlery, air conditioners, dishwashers, or area rugs for any units. Students are responsible for providing rugs that cover 80% of the floor area to comply with the terms of the lease.

Coin or card operated laundry facilities are available to all residents.

Pets are strictly prohibited in UAH, except for service animals and those pets kept in aquaria. Students with service animals must register with the Office of Disability Services (ODS). 

Contents:

Rental Rates

Types of Accommodations - This is a general description of typical UAH units.  As apartments/rooms vary in size, layout, location, and ameneties, we are unable to provide photos.  Student housing is primarily located between 108th Street and 125th Street, in the Morninside Heights and Manhattan Valley Neighborhoods, and also in Washington Heights and in Riverdale.    

Special Interest Buildings 

Morningside Heights Campus General Information

 Types of Accommodations

1. Apartment Shares

Students rent a private bedroom and share the common areas within a two to four bedroom apartment. Most apartment shares are single-gender. Tenants are responsible for cleaning the common areas and their own rooms. Apartment shares are used to house single students only. Rent is typically billed monthly. Couples, family members, and friends are strictly prohibited from sharing the accommodations with student residents. Pets are strictly prohibited in these accommodations. Violation of these policies will result in termination of the lease or student housing contract and the student will no longer be eligible for University housing.

Amenities - Approximately 80% of the three and four bedroom apartments are furnished and include the cost of utilities (cooking gas and electricity, not telephone). Two bedroom apartments are typically unfurnished, and utilities are usually not included in the rent.

2. Dormitory-Style Accommodations

Rooms are either private (one student per room- "single suite room #1") or semi-private (two students per room -"shared suite room #2"). Rental fees for these units are billed in full by semester and are charged to your Student Financial Services (SFS) account. Dormitory-style accommodations are used to house single students only, and most floors and suites are co-ed. Family members and friends are strictly prohibited from sharing the accommodations with student residents. Pets are strictly prohibited in these accommodations. Violation of these policies will result in termination of the student housing contract and the student will no longer be eligible for University housing.

Amenities - Students share kitchens, bathrooms, and any common areas. All rooms are furnished, and utilities (most have campus telephone service and Ethernet service) are included. Some of the buildings, like 362 Riverside Drive, 600 West 113th Street and 544 West 110th Street have a security desk located at the main entrance.

3. Studios/Efficiency Units

Studio units are very limited in number and demand greatly exceeds availability. Typically these are one-room units with a private bathroom and kitchen appliances along one wall of the room or located in a separate kitchen area. Couples or single students may live in studios but couples are given priority. Students applying as couples are required to provide appropriate documentation at lease/contract signing. Rent is typically billed monthly.

Amenities - One-room units with private bathroom. The kitchen appliances are along one wall of the room or located in a separate kitchen area. Most of these units are unfurnished and charges for utilities are generally not included in the rent.

4. One Bedroom Units

One bedroom apartments are very limited in number and demand greatly exceeds availability. Couples and students with children are given priority in assignment of one bedroom apartments. The limited supply of one bedroom apartments does not permit us to satisfy the requests of single students for these units. Documentation of couples' or family status is required at lease/contract signing. Rent is typically billed monthly.

Amenities - These apartments have a living room, kitchen facilities, a separate bedroom, and a bathroom. They vary in size and most are unfurnished. Utilities are generally not included in the rent.

5. Family Units

There are a small number of larger units that are suitable for families with children. Only students with dependent children may live in one of these apartments. Families with two or more children are given priority for these units. Documentation of family status is required at lease/contract signing. Rent is typically billed monthly.

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Special Interest Buildings

There are a few buildings within the UAH inventory which are used to house students who have particular interests or have affiliations in a particular school or academic program. If you are interested in living in any of these buildings please note your preference on your Housing Application.

 

The Arbor - Opening Summer of 2008

For a limited time, student housing is available at The Arbor, our new facility in Riverdale, Bronx, which opened in the summer of 2008. The majority of units available at The Arbor are "Apartment Share" style, with some couples and family housing also available. These luxury apartments are far more spacious than typical UAH units, with greater amenities, such as dishwashers and laundry machines. Shuttle service is available, and utilities are included for apartment shares. Parking is available for an additional fee.

Click here for more information on The Arbor and the Riverdale community.

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International House (I-House)- 500 Riverside Drive

UAH has made a special arrangement to lease single rooms at International House. Only students 21 years of age or older are eligible to apply to I-House. There is no UAH housing for couples in I-House. To apply for one of these rooms, students must fully and accurately complete both the UAH application and the I-House application. The I-House application is available online and must be completed and mailed directly to the UAH Office, once. Students accepted at I-House and approved for UAH by their schools will be assigned to I-House. Students must reside there for at least one academic year, and transfers to other UAH buildings are not available.

I-House is a dynamic program center and residence for 700 graduate students and interns from over one hundred countries, including 1/3 from the United States. Residents of I-House study or intern at over 75 academic and training institutions in New York City, in fields as diverse as dance and neuroscience. The mission of I-House is to enable selected residents to live and learn together in a challenging and supportive residential community that builds lifelong qualities of leadership, respect and friendship among individuals of all nations and backgrounds.

Community life takes hold throughout I-House in its numerous public rooms and facilities, which include a gymnasium, fitness center, study rooms and a pub. Other services include telephone service with personal voice mail, high speed internet, music practice rooms, laundry rooms and a computer lab. Resident members are encouraged to participate in the programs and activities, which include guest speakers, musical performances, and an outreach tutorial program for Harlem youth, and language exchanges.

The rooms leased by UAH are on co-ed and single gender floors. All are private furnished rooms with shared bathroom facilities on each floor. The dining room provides meals and opportunity for social interaction with other resident members (there is a modest kitchen available for those who wish to utilize it).

Students who receive an offer of accommodation at I-House must pay a $1,000 reservation/cancellation deposit to UAH when they accept the offer of housing. This reservation deposit will be credited to your Student Financial Services account when the housing contract is signed with UAH. Upon checking into I-House all resident members are required to pay the following additional fees: a refundable security deposit, a technology fee and dining service fee. (Please contact I-House for total amount of charges.)

Although students are allowed to check-in directly at I-House, everyone must also sign a housing contract agreement with UAH within the next business day of checking into I-House. Failure to do so will constitute cancellation your UAH assignment.

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Beit Ephraim (Kosher Housing) - 535 West 112th Street

While University Apartment Housing does not provide kosher housing, accommodations may be available at the Beit Ephraim, also known as "The Bayit." This "dormitory style" communal housing is run by Jewish students. You must apply directly to the Bayit. For more information on this community and for instructions on how to apply, please visit their Web site.

You can also contact the Bayit by E-mail:  mailto:bayitrecruiter@gmail.com

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Carlton Arms, 362 Riverside Drive (ALP and Engineering Combined Plan Program)

All ALP and Engineering Combined Plan Program students are housed in dormitory-style accommodations at the Carlton Arms. These rooms are located off a corridor and are either private (one student per room "single suite room #1") or semi-private (two students per room "shared suite room # 2"). Rental fees for these units are charged by the session/semester to your Student Financial Services (SFS) account. Dormitory-style accommodations are used to house single students only, and most floors and suites are co-ed. Family members and friends are strictly prohibited from sharing the accommodations with student residents. Pets are strictly prohibited in these accommodations. Violation of these policies will result in termination of the student housing contract and the student will no longer be eligible for University housing.

Amenities - Students share the kitchen, bathroom, and any common areas. All rooms are furnished, utilities (other than cable television), campus telephone service and Ethernet service are included. 362 Riverside Drive has a security desk located at the main entrance.

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600 West 113th Street

The majority of students housed in 600 West 113th Street are undergraduates in Columbia College, the School of Engineering and General Studies. All UAH assigned rooms are furnished and utilities (except cable television), campus telephone and Ethernet service are included. Students share kitchens, bathrooms and all common areas. Porter service provides basic cleaning services for kitchens, bathrooms and common areas. Rental fees are charged by semester to your Student Financial Services (SFS) account.

Amenities - This full service building has a 24-hour security desk, laundry room and 2 elevators. The building is located on the corner of Broadway and West 113th Street.

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2183 Amsterdam Avenue at West 168th Street

UAH leases unfurnished studio and unfurnished apartment shares at 2183 Amsterdam Avenue at West 168th Street. Rental fees are charged by semester to your Student Financial Services (SFS) account. These units require the same application and approval process as all other UAH units.

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"400" block of West 115th Street (Law School only)

Interested Law School students should indicate their preference for these buildings in the "comments" section of the UAH Application

Law School housing on the "400" block of West 115th Street is in five elevator apartments located between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive. These units are apartment shares, in which three students share the common areas (living room, kitchen, and bathroom) of an apartment, with each having an adjacent private bedroom. These apartments are furnished. Ethernet service, campus telephone service, and utilities (except cable television) are included in the rent. Rent is billed monthly.

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420 West 116th Street (Law School only)

Interested Law School students should indicate their preference for this building in the "comments" section of the UAH Application.

420 West 116th Street is a nine-story, early 20th century building directly across the street from Greene Hall, the main Law School classroom building. This block is home to several Law School faculty families, senior administrators, and the President of Columbia University. 420 West 116th Street has furnished and unfurnished studio/efficiency and one bedroom apartments. Ethernet service and campus telephone service are included in the rent. Rent is billed monthly, and utilities are not included in the rent.  

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Lenfest Hall, West 121st Street (Law School only)

Interested Law School students should indicate their preference for this building in the "comments" section of the UAH Application.

Lenfest Hall is located on West 121st Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive. This luxury high-rise building contains 181 studio/efficiency units and 28 one bedroom units. Lenfest's amenities include 24-hour security, public study rooms with wireless Internet connections, a bamboo garden and a card operated laundry room. All units are furnished with space-saving furniture that is able to accommodate a variety of arrangements and functions. Rental fees and electricity usage fees are charged by semester to your Student Financial Services (SFS) account.

Tenants in Lenfest are not eligible to transfer into other UAH buildings. For more information on Lenfest, please visit the Lenfest Web site.

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Lionsgate, 520 West 112th Street (Law School only)

Interested Law School students should indicate their preference for this building in the "comments" section of the UAH Application.

The University owns a number of furnished and unfurnished apartments in this high rise building on West 112th Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway. Lionsgate has 24-hour security. There are studio/efficiency, one bedroom, and two bedroom units available. Some of these units may be available to students with children, depending upon unit availability. Rent is billed monthly, and rates are significantly higher than in other UAH units. Tenants in Lionsgate are not eligible to transfer into other UAH buildings.

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Rental Rates

2009 - 2010 Monthly Rate Range

Type of accommodation

Furnished

Unfurnished

Apartment share unit

$787- $1,339

$771 - $1,303

* Dormitory-style private room-Suite Room # 1

$692 - $1,106

n/a

* Dormitory-style semi-private room-Suite Room # 2 (two students in room)

$596 -$767

n/a

Studio apartment

$1,122 -$1,698

$1,024 - $1,671

One bedroom apartment

$1,293 - $2,018

$1,179 - $2,238

* Lenfest Studio (Law School Only) - billed by semester

$1,681 - $2,081

n/a

* Lenfest One Bedroom (Law School Only)

$1,915 - $2,628

n/a

Lionsgate Studio (Law School Only)

$2,128 - $2,366

$2,128 - $2,366

Lionsgate One Bedroom (Law School Only)

$2,479 -$2,913

$2,479 - $2,913

Lionsgate Apartment share unit (Law School Only)

$1,054 - $1,741

$1,054 - $1,741

420 West 116th Street Studio (Law School Only)

$1,460 - $1,799 

$1,372 - $1,708

420 West 116th Street One Bedroom (Law School Only)

$1,663 - $2,444

$1,575 - $2,354 

400 Block of West 115th Street Apartment Share unit (Law School Only)

$979 - $1,315

n/a

2009 - 2010 ALP Session Rates Per Contract Holder

American Language Program -Fall Interim

(August 9 - September 6, 2009) 

 

$36 Per Day

 

n/a

American Language Program -Fall Session

(September 7 - December 12, 2009)

$3,060

n/a

American Language Program -Winter Interim

(December 13, 2009 - January 18, 2010)

 

$36 Per Day

 

n/a

American Language Program -Spring Session

(January 19 - April 30, 2010)

 

TBD

 

n/a

American Language Program -Summer A Session

(May 25 - June 20, 2009)

$860

n/a

American Language Program - Summer B Session

(June 21 - July 11, 2009)

$645

n/a

American Language Program - Summer C Session

(July 12 - August 8, 2009)

$895

n/a

American Language Program - Summer BC Session

(June 21 - August 8, 2009)

$1,650

n/a

* Please note that while ranges of monthly rates are estimated above, residents in certain types of housing are billed per semester.  A limited number of apartment shares and studios in buildings managed by UAH but not owned by the University are also billed per semester.

Morningside Heights Campus

Most UAH apartments are located in the Morningside Heights neighborhood, within walking distance of the Columbia campus. The Columbia campus, with its main gate at 116th Street and Broadway, is the neighborhood's geographic center.

Morningside Heights is home to a unique constellation of institutions, most of which date back to the turn of the century. Six institutions of higher learning-Bank Street College of Education, Barnard College, Jewish Theological Seminary, Manhattan School of Music, Teachers College and Union Theological Seminary-are within a few blocks of the Columbia campus. Eight churches and synagogues, including the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and Riverside Church, are located here, as is a major medical center, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital.

Four subway stations on Broadway at 103rd Street, 110th Street, 116th Street, and 125th Street, as well as numerous bus stops and the West Side Highway, provide Heights residents with access to the rest of New York City and the metropolitan area. Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue are the main commercial streets in the area, offering a variety of food markets, restaurants, shops, and bookstores.

Morningside Heights is one of the safest neighborhoods in New York. All University owned buildings are managed and operated by University employees and the University takes special measures to provide a secure living environment for all residents. The University's Department of Public Safety instructs and oversees all building personnel on security and safety procedures. All buildings have superintendents residing either in or very near the building. Columbia University's Department of Public Safety provides car and foot patrols for the entire UAH area. The Department also maintains strategically situated guard kiosks and provides emergency call boxes located throughout the area. The Morningside Area Alliance, a community service organization founded by the major institutions in the Heights, also provides security patrols. During the academic year, evening and night shuttle and escort services to locations throughout the neighborhood are available to all Columbia students.

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