Moving to Jacksonville for UNF: a housing guide for students and parents

Moving to Jacksonville for UNF, or sending a student here, brings up the same handful of questions every year: do first year students have to live on campus, how does in state tuition work, what are a renter's rights, and does buying a condo near campus make sense. I earned my nursing degree at UNF, but this guide isn't connected to the university. I'm a REALTOR®, not an attorney, tax advisor or residency officer, so use this as background and confirm the details with UNF and the right licensed professional.

Where UNF is and how students get around

The University of North Florida sits at 1 UNF Drive, Jacksonville, FL 32224 (UNF), on Jacksonville's Southside. UNF Housing describes the campus as 1,300 acres of woods (UNF Housing). Fall 2025 enrollment was 17,662 students: 14,992 undergraduates and 2,670 graduate students (UNF Fast Facts).

Getting around without a car is possible:

• Osprey Connector: UNF's free shuttle runs routes around campus and one to St. Johns Town Center (UNF International Center).
• JTA Route 8: JTA's January 2026 schedule for Route 8, Beach / Town Center, runs between the JRTC at LaVilla downtown and UNF, with timepoints on Beach Boulevard, and some trips stop at Tinseltown and St. Johns Town Center (JTA).
• College fares: As of October 2026, JTA runs a reduced fare pilot for college students: $1.00 for a single ride and $35.00 for a 31 day pass, with a college email and a smartphone required and enrollment checked each year (JTA).

UNF housing: what's required and what isn't

This is the question I'd want answered first. UNF's 2026 to 2027 catalog says the university encourages, but does not require, freshmen to live on campus (UNF Catalog). A few rules do apply once a student signs a housing contract:

• First year students living on campus must buy a meal membership (UNF Housing FAQ). The FAQ says the smallest one is 10 meals a week, and the catalog says a student who doesn't choose one will have the 14 meal plan assessed about three weeks before the term (UNF Catalog).
• A student's first housing contract carries a $100 one time, nonrefundable processing fee (UNF Housing).
• First year students can't stay in their rooms over Winter Break (UNF Housing FAQ).
• The Spring Only 2027 contract opened September 14, 2026. Contracts are first come, first served, and UNF may use a standby list if demand exceeds beds (UNF Housing).

Read the cancellation policy before you sign. UNF posts it next to each contract's terms (UNF Housing).

Florida residency for tuition: the 12 month rule

In state tuition at UNF follows section 1009.21, Florida Statutes (UNF Residency). To qualify, the student, or the parent of a dependent student, must have established and kept legal residence in Florida for at least 12 consecutive months immediately before the student's first day of class (Florida Statutes). That residence has to be a real domicile, not a temporary home kept because of enrollment (Florida Statutes).

The school needs two or more documents, and at least one must come from this list (Florida Statutes):

• Florida voter registration card
• Florida driver license or state ID card
• Florida vehicle registration
• Proof of a permanent Florida home occupied as a primary residence
• Proof of a Florida homestead exemption (counts alone as conclusive evidence)
• Multiple years of Florida high school transcripts, if the diploma was earned in the last 12 months
• Proof of permanent full time Florida employment, at least 30 hours a week, for 12 months

UNF adds that living in or attending school in Florida doesn't, by itself, establish legal residence, and that students who depend on out of state parents are presumed to be residents of their parents' state (UNF Residency). UNF also says a resident for tuition purposes must be a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident alien, or a legal alien granted indefinite stay, which is worth knowing for international students (UNF Residency).

If you're relocating here for work with a college student, the statute has paths for you. When a parent moves to Florida after the student finishes high school, the student may be reclassified after the parent has kept legal residence here for 12 consecutive months (Florida Statutes). If a resident student's parent later moves away, the student keeps the in state rate for a 12 month grace period (Florida Statutes). UNF's residency office makes the call.

Renting off campus in Florida

UNF says finding off campus housing is the student's responsibility, warns about rental scams, and advises never paying money before seeing the place (UNF International Center). My community pages for Southside, Deerwood, Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach cover what's nearby. Choose by budget, lease terms and how you'll get to class.

Florida's deposit rules sit in section 83.49 (Florida Statutes):

• The landlord has to keep the deposit in a separate Florida bank account, interest bearing or not, or post a surety bond.
• A landlord with five or more units must tell the tenant in writing, in the lease or within 30 days, how the deposit is held.
• After the lease ends, a landlord with no claim must return the deposit within 15 days.
• A landlord making a claim must send written notice by certified mail or email within 30 days. The tenant then has 15 days to object in writing.

Take dated photos at move in and move out. If a lease confuses you, a Florida attorney can review it.

Buying a condo or house for a student

Some parents would rather pay a mortgage than rent. Before you run numbers, understand homestead. Florida's homestead exemption goes to a person who holds title on January 1 and, in good faith, makes the property his or her permanent residence, or the permanent residence of someone legally or naturally dependent on them (Florida Statutes). It can cut taxable value by up to $51,411 for 2026, counting the $25,000 base exemption and the inflation adjusted second exemption (Florida Department of Revenue).

A parent's second home usually won't qualify. The statute does cover a home that's the permanent residence of someone legally or naturally dependent on the owner (Florida Statutes), and Florida allows only one homestead per person or family unit, so I'd ask the property appraiser before counting on it. The dependent language doesn't make a dorm alternative automatic either. Only the property appraiser can decide whether a property qualifies, and a place a student lives just during school terms may not count as a permanent home (Florida Department of Revenue). The statute also bars a Florida homestead for anyone claiming a residency based property tax break in another state, with an exception tied to dependents (Florida Statutes).

A student who owns the home is a different case. If the student holds title, makes it their permanent residence by January 1 and files by March 1, they may qualify (Florida Department of Revenue). The appraiser may ask for a Florida driver license, vehicle plate, voter registration and proof the student gave up another state's license (Florida Department of Revenue). Call the county property appraiser before you close, and talk with a tax advisor about how the title should read.

Without homestead, assessed value for non school taxes can rise up to 10% a year, and it resets to market value after a sale (Florida Statutes). Run the full cost through the monthly cost tool, and ask your loan officer how a second home or investment loan would be priced.

Condo rules to check near campus

If you're looking at condos near campus, learn the rules Florida has passed since 2022. A condo building three or more habitable stories tall needs a milestone inspection by December 31 of the year it turns 30, then every 10 years, and a local building official can set 25 years instead (Florida Statutes). Associations with buildings that tall need a structural integrity reserve study at least every 10 years, and for budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024, owners generally can't vote to skip or cut those structural reserves, though the law now allows a temporary pause to pay for milestone inspection repairs, so ask the association where its reserves stand (Florida Statutes). On a resale, the buyer can cancel within 7 days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, after getting the association documents (Florida Statutes).

Read the declaration's leasing rules too, in case the student moves on and you want to rent the unit. Check flood risk with the address check tool, and read buying a home in Florida if the process is new to you.

How I'd approach it

Start with UNF Housing's dates, because spring contracts are first come, first served. Sort out residency paperwork early. If you rent, put the deposit rules in your notes. If you buy, call the property appraiser and a tax advisor before you sign anything, then compare the full monthly cost with rent nearby. That order saves money and stress.