Get Started
The Office of Graduate Affairs is here to help answering any questions and navigate your off campus living experience. Looking for an apartment? looking for a housemates? Need help with your lease? A good place to start is to think about your budget and be mindful with the apartment search process.
PRICE: It is important to know your budget when starting the apartment search process. Besides monthly rental costs, there are some other cost to consider as well. Some costs may be a one-time cost such as initial fees and furniture, whereas others may be continual costs like groceries, utilities, and transportation. You should consider all of these costs when budgeting to live off campus.
PAPERWORK: When you rent an apartment off-campus, a lease always needs to be signed. There may be other paperwork that is also needed including, but not limited to, rental applications, addendums, and other miscellaneous agreements. It's important that you always read the fine print on all documents that you are signing. Remember, once you sign a document, it is legally binding so make sure you know what you are signing. Use our Lease Checklist and review your lease! Submit an inquiry if you have questions to graduateaffairs@brandeis.edu!
PEOPLE: Our Off Campus Website contains many resources to help start whether you are trying to find a housemate, realtor, or landlord. All of these people play an integral role in the off campus experience. It is important that you know who you are working with as they will be involved throughout the process. Establishing good communication with all related people will make your transaction off campus easier!
PICTURES and WALKTHROUGH: Pictures and WALKTHROUGH are useful at both the beginning and end of the apartment search process. They can be used to identify possible rental scams when you are browsing and to ensure that the property that you are renting is up to code. Pictures also help to protect your security deposit by verifying damages that already existed when you move in. When moving in, it is important to take pictures and also to complete an Apartment Condition Checklist to have visual documentation of where you are living in case you need to dispute a security deposit deduction.