UGA Off-Campus Housing: 9 Places to Live in Five Points, Normaltown and the Eastside

Skip the downtown high-rises and UGA off-campus housing mostly comes down to three areas. Five Points means a rented house 1.2 to 2 miles from class, with whole-house rents between $2,449 and $5,000. The older streets toward Normaltown are oddly close (0.7 to 1 mile). And the Eastside? Cheaper complexes listing from $690 to $850, 2 to 3 miles out, where the bus is your commute.

Full disclosure: every building here is pulled from the off-campus housing near UGA we list at Find My Place, using the rent and mileage each page showed on September 25, 2026.

Key Takeaways

• Best-value Five Points house: 188 Northview Dr, $2,449 for three bedrooms.
• Shortest walk goes to 595 Waddell St (0.7 miles), where the four-bedroom splits to $815 each.
• Eastside complexes are cheapest per person (Polo Club Athens lists from $690), but you trade that for a 2 to 3 mile ride.
• Divide house rents by the bedroom count. Seriously, do it before you panic about a $3,500 number.
• Buses cost nothing: ACC Transit is fare-free and UGA runs its own routes.

How the Three Areas Compare

Three tiers, roughly. Five Points is the classic house-renting area, right by the Milledge Avenue Greek houses. The Normaltown side (the older in-town streets between downtown and Normaltown, like Waddell, Harris and West Hancock) is closer than you would expect and a little calmer. The Eastside is where the budget lives.

Here is the catch nobody mentions on tours. The houses and the complexes quote rent differently. At the big complexes, the rent drops as the bedroom count goes up, which only makes sense if you are paying per bed. At the houses, rent climbs with every bedroom, so it is the whole-house number.

Single-plan houses show no curve, but at $2,015 to $6,600 they can only be whole-house rents, since FMP's Athens page puts shared rooms at $500 to $1,200 per person. Forget that and a $3,500 house looks five times pricier than a $690 apartment, when split four ways it is closer to 1.3 times.

1. 125 Woodrow St (Five Points): Best for a Group That Wants the Classic Five Points House

125 Woodrow St is the Five Points rental people picture when they hear the name. Three bedrooms, one bath, $3,135 a month, and 1.2 miles to UGA according to our listing. Woodrow is tucked right by the Milledge and Lumpkin intersection, so the Five Points strip is basically your front yard.

One bathroom for three people is the tradeoff. If your group can live with a morning schedule, you get a whole house of your own within walking distance of class and the Five Points coffee shops.

2. 188 Northview Dr (Five Points): Best Value House in Five Points

188 Northview Dr is the best-value Five Points house on FMP right now. It asks $2,449 for a three-bed, one-bath, 1.3 miles from UGA. That is almost $700 less than 125 Woodrow St for the same bedroom count.

Split three ways, you are looking at roughly $816 each before utilities (the listing says fees are not posted yet, so budget a little higher). For a Five Points address, that is the lowest per-person house rent in FMP's current Athens listings.

3. Milledge Oaks (Five Points): Best if Your Group Size Is Still Changing

Milledge Oaks on Milledge Drive has something the other Five Points houses don't: options. One-bedroom for $1,695. Four-bed, three-bath for $5,000. Two sizes in between. It is 1.6 miles from UGA.

Because rent climbs with each bedroom, you are looking at whole-unit prices. Four people pay $1,250 apiece (steep). Two people in the $2,600 two-bedroom pay $1,300, and down the road 476 Milledge Cir lists a two-bed, two-bath for that same $2,600 at 1.7 miles.

Honest verdict: you pay for the street name here. If your group is four people, compare it against 1686 Milledge Ave, a four-bedroom, one-bath that lists at $3,580 about 2 miles out, farther south on Milledge.

4. 595 Waddell St (Normaltown Side): Shortest Commute on This List

Nothing in this guide beats 595 Waddell St on distance. It's 0.7 miles out. You get two choices: a three-bed, one-bath for $2,445, or a four-bed, two-bath for $3,260.

Do the division and both come out to about $815 a person. So the four-bedroom gets you a second bathroom for free, basically. That is the pick I would make on this whole list if I were signing with three friends.

5. 1095 W Hancock Ave (Normaltown Side): Best for Health Sciences Students

Public health or Medical Partnership classes on Prince Avenue? Start your search west of downtown. 1095 W Hancock Ave, a four-bed, one-bath, asks $3,500, sits a mile from UGA, and is a quick bike up to Prince.

That campus sits in Normaltown, on the old State Normal School grounds, and UGA runs a dedicated Health Science bus route. The neighborhood is quieter than Five Points. Think Sips Espresso and Normal Bar, not game-day crowds on your lawn.

The downside is one bathroom for four people. At $875 each, that is a real ask.

6. 285 N Harris St (Normaltown Side): Best if Everyone Needs Their Own Bathroom

285 N Harris St gives four people four bathrooms, 0.8 miles from UGA. It also costs $6,600 a month. That is the priciest thing here by a mile, about $1,650 a head.

So why include it? Because four private bathrooms in a house this close to downtown is rare. The one other four-bed, four-bath house FMP lists in Athens is 110 Appleby Dr, at $4,380 and 1.1 miles out, which is the better deal at $1,095 each. If your group hates sharing a sink, start there. Everyone else should skip to the Eastside.

7. Polo Club Athens (Eastside): Cheapest Per Person

$690. That's where Polo Club Athens on International Drive starts, 2.8 miles from UGA. Four-bedroom flats and townhomes go up to $910, and there are two- and three-bed plans too.

That $690 is per bed, and here's how you know: the two-bedroom plans start at $875 while the four-bedrooms start at $690, and only per-bed pricing makes that math work. Units come furnished with in-unit laundry and private bathrooms, per the property's own site.

You will ride the bus. At almost three miles, walking to Tate is not happening, so check the ACC Transit and UGA East Side schedules before you sign.

8. The Haven of Athens (Eastside): Best for Townhouse-Style Space

More bathrooms than bedrooms. Every plan at The Haven of Athens on Kentucky Circle has three or four beds and 3.5 or 4.5 baths, starting at $850, two miles from UGA.

Weirdly, the four-bedroom ($850) lists lower than the three-bedrooms ($860 to $899). Ask the office if that is per person before you stack it against a house. My guess is yes. Get it in writing anyway.

9. Atlas Athens (Eastside): Best-Reviewed Eastside Complex

Atlas Athens at 2400 Lexington Road lists from $825 a month, and it is the only Eastside complex here with verified student reviews on FMP. Two residents who posted in June 2026 gave it straight 5s for management, quality and social life.

A one-bedroom starts at $1,399, but the four-bedroom plans are only $900 to $1,010. Per-bed pricing, clearly. You're across the Oconee River out on Lexington Road, so budget for bus time or gas.

Rather have a house out here? 130 Greencrest Dr is our cheapest Eastside one at $2,015 for three bedrooms. It's 3.2 miles out, though.

Getting to Campus Without a Parking Pass

Parking near North Campus is a headache, and every local will tell you so. So take the bus, which is free. ACC Transit dropped fares, and UGA Campus Transit runs the M (Milledge), H (Health Science) and L (East Side Limited) routes, among others.

In Five Points, people walk or bike. Normaltown-side renters are about 15 minutes on foot from downtown. Eastside? Live by the stop, and check when the last night bus runs before you sign anything.

Want the full map? Browse all student housing in Athens, GA, or read what residents say on the Athens apartment reviews page.

Frequently Asked Questions About UGA Off-Campus Housing

Which area has the cheapest UGA off-campus housing?

The Eastside. Polo Club Athens lists from $690 a month per bed, and Atlas Athens starts at $825. Houses in Five Points rarely come in under $800 a person once you split the rent.

Is Five Points walkable to UGA?

Yes, for most of it. 125 Woodrow St is 1.2 miles and 188 Northview Dr is 1.3 miles from UGA per FMP listings, and Five Points borders the south side of campus. The farther down Milledge you go, the more you will want a bike.

Where should UGA health sciences students live?

West of downtown, toward Normaltown. The Health Sciences Campus is on Prince Avenue, and houses like 1095 W Hancock Ave put you close to both it and main campus. UGA's H route links the two.

Are Athens rents per bed or per house?

Complexes go by the bed, houses go by the house. Big complexes like Polo Club and Atlas price per bed, which is why their four-bedroom plans list for less than their one-bedrooms. Houses like Milledge Oaks and 595 Waddell St quote the full-house rent, so always ask which one you are looking at.