Housing & Residence Life

two students outside Blackstone

Returner Registration

 Returner Registration is now closed. Students can still complete the 2025-2026 Housing Contract through the Housing Portal.

What is Returner Registration?

Returner Registration allows current residents to choose their housing for the upcoming academic year before new incoming students are assigned. This is the only time residents pick their own unit exactly where they want it. Choose from any of our buildings.

To participate, current residents must submit a housing contract by 4pm on Wednesday, February 26th. Residents will have two options:

Additional information on this page:

Renew Your Room

Room Renewal is available for residents who want to stay continuously through Summer 2025 and the 2025-2026 academic year in the same unit. A Summer 2025 contract is required to renew for 2025-2026.

Residents who will not live on campus for Summer term cannot go through the Room Renewal process and should select the Pick A Room option. Some units will be closed for Summer 2025 (Ondine, St Helens, Blackstone, and select units in Broadway and Stephen Epler). Residents in those units should select Pick a Room option below.

Steps to complete to Renew Your Room:

  1. Complete Summer 2025; Contract via the Housing Portal first. You must have a summer contract in order to renew your same room continuously through Summer and the next Academic Year.
  2. Complete 2025-2026; Contract by 4pm, February 26th

If a resident renews their unit and later cancels their summer contract, a revised academic year assignment may be issued.

Pick a Room

Current residents have priority to pick a room for the upcoming academic year before new incoming students are assigned. Selection times are assigned in the order contracts are received, so it is a good idea to submit your contract as early as possible.

Steps to be completed Pick a Room:

  1. Complete 2025-2026 Contract via the Housing Portal by 4pm, February 26th
  2. At the end of February, you will receive an email with your assigned selection time to pick your new unit. This email will tell you how long you have to pick your new unit. Read it carefully.
  3. When your selection time opens (between March 4-14), log into the Housing Portal and select your room.

We encourage residents to research our photos, unit types, buildings, and floor plans to identify between two and three room types and between five and ten specific units in advance of your selection time. This ensures that you are well prepared to pick your room when your selection time opens in March.

Want to pick your same unit for next year but not planning to stay for Summer? Depending on your unit, you may be able to select your same room during selection timeslots in March. We encourage you to submit your contract early for your best chance. Residents currently in FYE and SYE spaces will not be able to pick the same room.

Tips for Picking a Room

The most common mistake residents make is selecting a room before reviewing their options and later regretting their choice. All selection times are staggered so that students have time to choose a unit. There is no need to rush. If you select a unit and later wish to change it, your original selection will be cancelled and you will receive a new selection time to pick a new room. Your new time slot will be assigned at the end of all other selection times, so there is no guarantee that you will find a better unit the second time.

If you do not select a room by the time your room selection timeslot closes, your 2025-2026 Housing Contract will be cancelled. You will lose priority housing options and you would have to reactivate your contract if you wish to receive an assignment at a later date.

Special Communities

Second Year Experience: The Second Year Experience (SYE) community is located in the renovated St. Helens building. Priority for the SYE community is given to students currently in a First Year Experience community in Broadway, Ondine or Stephen Epler. SYE units include double furnished studios (single and double occupancy) as well as one-bedroom apartments (double occupancy).

Honors Housing: Residents admitted to the University Honors College will be eligible to select a unit on the Honors Floors in Stephen Epler. Only residents with the Honors designation will be able to select units on these floors.

Roommates

Residents selecting a double-furnished unit who have identified their preferred roommate for the academic year can complete the following process:

  1. Each resident must submit a 2025-2026 housing contract prior to 4pm, February 26th.
  2. Between February 12th and 4pm, February 26th, log into the Housing Portal to identify your roommate using the Roommate Search process. You will need your preferred roommate's PSU email address to search.
  3. Once requested, the selected roommate will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to accept or decline the request. They must log into the Housing Portal to confirm prior to 4pm, February 26th to be paired.
  4. When your selection time opens, the roommate with the earlier selection time will select a room for both residents. Please make sure both roommates agree to the selected unit. Discuss your respective budgets prior to beginning the process.
  5. The roommate with the later selection time does not need to complete any action during the selection time, as their roommate will have already selected a room for the both of them. They may log into the Housing Portal to see their selected room.

In order for the Roommate Search Tool to work, both roommates must:

  1. Be a current resident
  2. Have a matching gender*
  3. Have submitted a 2025-2026 Housing Contract.

*If a resident wants to share a double unit with a roommate of a different gender, one resident should select the unit when their selection time opens. Both roommates should then email housing@pdx.edu indicating the other resident as their preferred roommate and specify what unit they wish to share.  UHRL will manually assign the second resident to the unit that was selected, and the second resident will need to accept or decline the Housing assignment offer once they receive it. Ondine suites must have matching genders.

Live in Portland This Summer

Current residents are eligible to live on campus without taking summer courses, even if they are graduating at the end of spring term. Residents who renew their room for 2025-2026 will stay in the same unit. Residents do not select their Summer rooms, but rather will receive an assignment offer starting in late April.

In most cases, residents with a reserved room for the 2025-2026 academic year will transfer to that unit at the beginning of Summer term. If the unit is unavailable or if a resident is only staying for summer, they will move to a Summer Housing Building (Montgomery, Broadway, Blumel, or Stephen Epler). All summer units are furnished. Units do not come with air conditioning. However, residents are permitted to have an air conditioner (see Housing Handbook for details). If a resident is continuing through 2025-2026 in a different unit than their summer space, they will likely transfer rooms during one of two transfer weekends in late summer.

Remember that summer contracts are separate from academic year contracts. Students planning to remain in campus housing this summer and through the next academic year must submit both a summer housing contract and an academic year housing contract.  Both may be submitted in the Housing Portal.

Summer Room Transfers: Residents will be notified of their summer room transfer details in May. Most current residents with summer contracts will transfer to their summer housing unit on June 21. Residents must be available to transfer that weekend. Residents who are not available to transfer should plan to move their belongings out of their unit prior to June 14, and return with their items on June 21 or after.

Fall Room Transfers: Residents with 2025-2026 contracts will transfer to fall units on August 23, September 6, or another weekend identified by UHRL. Residents will be notified of their fall transfer date in July. Residents must be available to transfer during the transfer period they are assigned. Residents who are not available to transfer should plan to move their belongings out prior to their transfer date, and return with their items on or after their assigned room transfer date.

Financial Details

CONTRACT FEE

Residents will be charged a $50 Contract Fee to their student account when they submit their 2025-2026 Contract. Payment will be due by the 6th of the following month.

SPRING PREPAYMENT

Residents who complete a 2025-2026 Housing Contract will be charged a $140 Prepayment that will be due in Fall 2025. Students will have a $140 Room Rate Reduction in Spring Term 2026 (i.e. a unit that normally costs $2135/term will cost $1995 in Spring Term). Students who cancel their contract anytime after May 1, 2025 will not receive a refund of the Spring Prepayment.

CANCELLATIONS

Your contract will be cancelled if you do not pick a room during your selection time, or if you do not respond to a manual Housing assignment offer.

Summer cancellation fees may apply. Please refer to the Terms & Conditions and Cancellation Guide. These documents contain cancellation dates and information.

Any resident who cancels their academic year Contract after June 15, 2025 will pay a buyout fee. For more information, see 2025–2026 Terms & Conditions.