TAMPA, Fla. — It's move-in day at the University of Tampa.
But an on-campus housing crunch has sent hundreds of incoming freshmen scrambling to find apartments.
Dorms at UT filled up quickly as freshman signed up for housing over the summer, but because the incoming freshman class was overbooked, there wasn't enough room for all of them.
What You Need To Know
- University of Tampa on-campus housing crunch impacting incoming freshmen
- Incoming freshman class was overbooked, not enough on-campus housing for all of them
- PREVIOUS STORY: UT facing housing cruch for some incoming freshmen
Students say off-campus housing was hard to find, and when apartments were available, rent was $1,400 and higher.
Freshman Jack Ryan Drake said he had to act fast to get into The Henry, a new apartment building near UT.
It is now occupied by mostly UT students.
"I had to hurry up and scramble, where am I going to stay, where am I going to stay?" said Drake.
UT is working with students that have been unable to find housing, offering them $3500 in tuition deferment. To receive it, students would need to agree to start school in the fall of '22.
For students like Drake who did find housing, they are now working to figure out if student loans will cover the cost of off-campus housing. More information on the deferral grant program: https://www.ut.edu/campus-life/residence-life/off-campus-housing-faq
"The issue we are trying to figure out now is, is that money that I got for Tampa, can I now use that instead of for my dorm to use here,” Drake said. “That's what we are trying to figure out."