Cancellations and Move-out

Farewell Seawolves! Whether you have lived with us for a few months or a few years, you will be moving out of student housing at some point. Please see the information below to make your experience with move-out as seamless as possible. 

Finals Week and Preparation for Move-out

Pre-final Visits

Starting the week before finals, Residence Life student staff members will be checking in with residents about end-of-semester plans and checking rooms in preparation for move-out. The goals of Pre-Finals Visits include: 

• Determine each resident’s plan for the Winter Break: Will they be on-campus the entire break, part of it or none of it? Or is the resident planning to move-out?
• If residents are moving out, confirm that they have completed a Cancellation Form
• If residents are staying for the next semester, check that students have registered in at least 9 undergraduate or 3 graduate credits. Encourage residents to connect with resources, such as MyUAA and Navigate to ensure they do not have a hold on their student account and are prepared for the start of the next semester
• Review the facility instructions for residents returning in the spring semester, but who may be leaving campus for a portion or all of the break, including:
  • Turn off all the lights in your suite/apartment 
  • Close and latch all windows 
  • Unplug all electronics except for refrigerators
  • Shut all doors 
  • Turn your thermostat to 60 degrees 
  • Leave the half sheet of information regarding the break given to each resident taped to your door

Quiet Hours

Residence Life strictly enforces 24-hour quiet hours during finals week at the end of the fall and spring semesters. 24-hour quiet hours begin at 5:00 PM on the Sunday prior to the first day of finals and runs through 5:00 PM of the Saturday before commencement. 

Staff Checks of Empty Rooms

During finals week in the fall and spring semesters, Residence Life staff members will begin performing inspections of rooms that students have moved out of to check for any damages, missing furniture, abandoned property and cleanliness issues. Residents who are still living on-campus during this time should be prepared for staff to enter their suite or apartment during this time if they had a roommate recently move out. 

Additionally, the weekend prior to the fall and spring semester move out date (the Monday following commencement at 12:00 PM), Residence Life staff members will enter every suite and apartment on-campus to ensure the facilities related instructions shared during Pre-Final Visits were followed (i.e., windows shut and latched, lights turned off, electronics unplugged, doors shut and locked, etc.). 

Finally, teams of professional staff members will begin entering suites and apartments shortly after the move-out deadline has passed each semester to ensure residents have vacated their spaces if they were supposed to be moving off-campus and making assessing damage and improper check-out fees as needed.

Donation Stations

During the main move-out time periods at the end of the fall and spring semesters, Residence Life operates a number of Donation Stations in an effort to prevent lightly used or new items from being thrown away. Donation Stations are operational starting one week prior to the fall and spring move out days (i.e. the first day of finals) located in the lobby area of each residence hall and the MAC Shack. Residents are encouraged to take anything in the area that they will use, as well!

Move-out Checklist

• Coordinate with your roommates to determine who will be responsible for cleaning and removing items from the commons areas. Remove all personal belongings - including any furniture or appliances (microwave, mini-fridge, couches, televisions) you may have brought in.
• If you used Command Strips to hang things, DO NOT remove them! Our maintenance staff are experts at removing Command Strips without damaging the wall and are happy to do it for you. You will not be charged for any Command Strips left on the walls, but you will be charged for drywall damage from Command Strips that have been removed.

• Return furniture to the same layout it was in when you moved in.

• Remove all trash.

• Clean your bedroom and suite/apartment - vacuum, sweep floors, wipe down surfaces of furniture, shelves, inside drawers and window sills, clean bathrooms and kitchens if applicable. Coordinate with your suitemates to determine who will clean what and who will remove things left in kitchens or common areas. Don't leave everything for the last person out!

• When you are ready to leave, turn off the lights and be sure your bedroom door is closed and latched (so no one can cause damage in your room after you leave). You do not need to formally check out - Residence Life staff will check your room for any damages or abandoned items after you leave.

Abandoned Items and Property Retrieval

• Items discovered in suites and apartments after a resident has moved out are considered abandoned by the student. Staff members may choose to store items they have reason to believe the owner may have unintentionally left behind so they can be claimed later by the resident. However, the University has no obligation to find or store any item left behind by a resident and is not responsible for any damage or theft that occurs while the item is in Residence Life’s possession.
• Residents may be responsible for a $60/hour room pack-up/property removal fee (minimum of one hour).  
• Residents who believe they may have left an item behind and want to retrieve their property should contact the Department of Residence Life as soon as possible after moving out. If the item is located, Residence Life will store it up to 30 days after which time the item will be disposed of or donated. 
• Retrieved property can be claimed at the Gorsuch Commons Information Desk. For hours and location, please visit our contact page.  

Damages and Improper Check Out Fees

• We understand normal wear and tear happens. Residents will not be charged for minor damages associated with simply living in a space (i.e. worn down material, small scuffs on floors or walls, degradation of tile grout, etc.).  
• Residents should note that the furniture provided in student housing is commercial grade and therefore tends to be significantly more expensive than what can be found at local furnishing stores. Estimated charges to replace these items if they are damaged are listed below.
• Damage charges are determined by comparing the state of apartments and suites at the time of check out with the Room Condition Report (RCR) completed by Residence Life staff members at the beginning of each year. Residents have 48 hours after moving in to report any additional issues in their space not already noted on the RCR. Each time a resident moves out or over, maintenance and custodial teams go through each room to address facility issues, clean and ensure the space is ready for the next occupant. 
• We attempt to release damage charges as quickly as possible, but Residence Life reserves the right to assess damage charges if information becomes available later through the end of the subsequent semester. 

Commons Charges

This is not an exhaustive list and individual circumstances may impact the final price. This is meant to be a reference and represents average costs: 

Common Area Damages

• Damage charges, charges for the removal of abandoned items and/or cleaning charges that cannot be attributed to a specific resident will be evenly distributed among all residents of a suite or apartment. 
• In most instances, Residence Life depends on information gathered from residents to determine who is responsible for charges for the removal of abandoned items and/or cleaning charges in common areas. If residents present conflicting information without supporting evidence, Residence Life will revert to evenly distributing charges among all residents of a suite or apartment. 

Appeals

• Residents who are assessed charges for improper checkout fees, damage fees or the cost of replacing an item have the option to appeal that decision. Appeals can be submitted in writing via email to the Department of Residence Life within 10 business days from the time they receive email notification of the damage charges
• Appeals are reviewed by a panel of professional staff members. The appeal decision will be communicated via email to the resident within 10 business days of the department’s receipt of the appeal. The appeal decision constitutes the University’s final decision on the matter.

Deposit Releases

Students are eligible for a release of their housing deposits as a credit to their student accounts after move-out in the following circumstances: 

• A student moves out at the end of the fall semester and has completed a Cancellation Form prior to December 1
• A student moves out at the end of the spring or summer semester and has completed an Intentions Cancellation Form indicating they do not plan to return in the fall. 

Students who are eligible for a deposit release will receive an email once the deposit credit has been applied to their student account. This generally happens several weeks after check-out once Residence Life staff members have checked all vacated rooms, assessed damages charges and resolves appeals.  

Please visit the Residence Life Cancellations webpage for more information about cancellation deadlines and deposit