TCU Lease Timeline: When to Look for Off-Campus Housing

February. That is when to look for off-campus housing at TCU if you want a place you can walk to class from. Landlords on the streets around West Berry and University Drive post fall units in February and March, most of the good ones are signed in March and April, and by finals week the walkable stuff is mostly spoken for. One catch for current sophomores: TCU's own upperclass housing application for 2027-28 already ran, from September 14 to October 2, 2026.

 

Two clocks, then. Campus wants an answer in the fall; the Fort Worth rental market wakes up in the spring. That mismatch trips up a lot of Horned Frogs, so the whole year is laid out below. The TCU off campus housing map has 74 Fort Worth properties on it as of this week.

 

Key Takeaways

• Start in February. Wait until May and you are probably driving.
• Because of TCU's two-year live-on rule, junior year is when most people sign their first Fort Worth lease.
• On-campus housing for 2027-28 was decided last month (applications closed October 2, assignments went out October 12 to 14), long before landlords list.
• March and April are the crunch.
• "Lists from" prices we are seeing today: $1,079 at McCart Apartments, $1,230 at Village East Apartment, $999 for a private room at Loft Vue Living.
• Moving out later? Texas law starts your 30-day deposit refund clock only once the landlord has your forwarding address in writing.

 

When to Look for Off-Campus Housing at TCU: The Short Answer

Start in February for a lease that begins in late summer. That is the whole answer if walking to class matters to you. TCU sits in Westcliff, a pricey residential pocket of southwest Fort Worth with lawns and old trees rather than a strip of student high-rises, so there just are not many rentals near the main entrance, and returning students grab them first.

Later is possible. It just changes what you get. Start in May and you will still find something, only it will be on Magnolia in the Near Southside, or down Hulen, or out on Chisholm Trail, and you will want a car. Check the walk or drive time on each Find My Place listing before the pool photos.

 

Why TCU Students Decide on Campus Housing in October

TCU runs its upperclass housing process in the fall, a full school year ahead. The TCU Housing & Residence Life application for 2027-28 juniors and seniors opened the week of September 14, 2026. It closed October 2. Assignment events ran October 12 to 14. Freshmen heading into sophomore year get their turn later, in February and March 2027.

That creates an awkward gap. In late September you are comparing Tom Brown/Pete Wright or Molly Reid against a market that has not listed yet. Some students apply on campus as a safety net, then go apartment hunting in February anyway. If you do that, read the cancellation terms on your housing agreement before you sign a Fort Worth lease, because getting out of one may cost you.

The two-year requirement

TCU makes incoming first-year students live on campus for two academic years. There are five exemptions, including being 21 by the first day of fall classes or living with a parent within 30 miles. Think one fits? Email housing@tcu.edu before you sign a thing.

What TCU's 2,500 new beds could change in fall 2027

TCU says about 2,500 new beds are coming across several new communities starting in fall 2027, including part of a new east-side residence hall for juniors and seniors. More upperclass beds on campus could take some pressure off the closest off-campus buildings. Could. Nobody knows yet how many juniors will pick the new halls over an apartment on McCart Avenue.

 

The Month-by-Month TCU Off-Campus Lease Timeline

This is the year for a student moving off campus in August 2027, using Find My Place's TCU market data for listing windows and TCU's own dates for campus housing.

September to October: settle the on-campus question

Apply for upperclass campus housing, or decide on purpose not to. For 2027-28 that door is shut, so if you are reading this in November without an assignment, congratulations, you are an apartment hunter now.

November to January: build the group and the budget

Not much is listed yet, which is the point. Pick your roommates. Agree on a hard monthly ceiling. Figure out who has a car. Four people who have not agreed on a number will lose a good house to four people who have.

February to March: listings go up

This is when landlords in the TCU neighborhood post their fall units. Tour early. Loft Vue Living sits on McCart Avenue about an 18-minute walk from campus, and McCart Apartments is about 17 minutes on foot. Those are the buildings that fill first.

March to April: peak signing

Everybody is shopping now: rising juniors, seniors who want a change, grad students. Show up to tours with your ID and a parent or guarantor already on standby, because the group that can apply the same afternoon usually wins. Still read the lease before you pay.

May to June: the second wave

The Fort Worth market turns over mostly in May and June, so a second batch of units appears when current tenants give notice. Fewer of them are walkable. Mistletoe Station, a 7-minute drive from TCU and listing from $811, is typical of what is still open this late.

July to August: move in

Most leases around TCU run 12 months, so a summer start is common even though classes begin in late August. Budget for a rent payment or two before classes start.

 

What Rent Looks Like When You Sign Near TCU

Shared rooms in the TCU/Westcliff neighborhood typically run $900 to $1,300 a month per person, and solo apartments start around $1,200 to $1,600, according to Find My Place's TCU market data.

• Loft Vue Living: private rooms from $999 in a 5-bedroom unit, rising to $1,169 in a 2-bedroom (the per-room price drops as the unit gets bigger, which is how per-bed pricing behaves).
• One-bedrooms only at McCart Apartments, listing from $1,079 to $1,099.
• Village East Apartment is a 14-minute walk. It lists from $1,230, and its 1-bedrooms start at $1,815.

Read the price label before you compare: some buildings list by the room, some by the whole apartment. Our TCU student housing cost breakdown goes deeper on fees and utilities.

 

Texas Lease Rules That Affect Your TCU Timeline

Three short bits of the Texas Property Code decide when you can leave one place and start paying for the next. Students still get burned by them every May.

Your notice-to-vacate date is whatever your lease says

Read your current lease tonight if you already rent. Texas Property Code Section 91.001 gives month-to-month renters a one-month notice period, but a lease both sides signed can swap in its own number. That clause is how people end up paying June rent on an apartment they left in May.

Deposit refunds run on a 30-day clock

Thirty days. That is how long your landlord gets to return the deposit after you move out, per Section 92.103, and the count starts only once you have given a forwarding address in writing (email works, and it leaves a timestamp). One more wrinkle. A lease can make advance move-out notice a condition of the refund, but only if that line is underlined or printed in conspicuous bold.

Late fees wait two full days

No late fee until rent has gone unpaid for two full days past the due date. Under Section 92.019, a fee counts as reasonable at up to 10 percent of a month's rent in buildings with more than four units, 12 percent in smaller ones.

 

Frequently Asked Questions About When to Look for Off-Campus Housing at TCU

Is November too early to look for off-campus housing near TCU?

To sign, yes. Hardly anything for fall 2027 is posted yet. To plan, it is perfect: settle roommates and budget now so you can move the week February listings appear.

When do TCU freshmen apply for sophomore-year housing?

February 2027, with the application closing and selections happening in March. Juniors and seniors already did their round this fall.

Do leases near TCU start in August?

Not always. Most leases around TCU are 12 months, and the local market turns over mainly in May and June, so your start date can land well before classes. Get the exact date in writing. A June 1 start you will not use until mid-August is roughly two and a half months of rent for an empty room.

Should I sign a lease before TCU on-campus assignments come out?

You will not have to choose. Assignments for 2027-28 went out October 12 to 14, 2026, and the February listing wave is still months away. Ready to tour? Our guide on how to find off-campus housing near TCU has the steps.