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Lafayette College perches about 2,514 students on College Hill, a leafy rise above the Delaware River in Easton, Pennsylvania, where the Lehigh Valley meets the New Jersey line. Campus is compact and walkable, with Victorian homes and academic buildings stacked along tree-lined streets that look out over the river. The defining tradition is the Lafayette-Lehigh football game, the most-played rivalry in college football, and Rivalry Week brings a bonfire, a car smash, and signs all over the Hill. Downtown Easton sits at the base of the slope, where Centre Square hosts a long-running public market and the rivers draw students to the waterfront in warm months. Most students walk everywhere on the Hill, and LANTA buses link campus to downtown.
Lafayette guarantees housing to all enrolled students and expects most of them to live on campus, moving through first-year halls, upper-class residences, and special-interest houses like the Arts House or Hillel House. First-years live on College Hill close to class.
Private off-campus living is essentially a senior privilege, and a small one: fewer than 15% of seniors get released from the housing contract to rent from a local landlord. You apply for that release through Residential Life, and approval is required before you sign anything.
The College Hill rental market is small and competes with longtime local residents, so listings are limited and go quickly. Easton zoning matters here: a regulated rental unit generally can't house more than three unrelated people, which shapes how many roommates can legally share a place. Expect standard Pennsylvania leases with a security deposit and first month up front, and read for who handles heat and snow, since older College Hill houses can be drafty and winters here are real.
Housing policies change frequently. Always verify current requirements directly with Lafayette College before signing a lease.
Because Lafayette houses most students through senior year, your timeline depends on whether you land an off-campus release. That release process runs in the spring, so rising seniors who want to rent privately should apply early and not sign a lease until they're approved. The College Hill market is tight, with a limited pool of houses split between students and longtime residents. Start looking in February and March and walk the streets right around campus.
The better units get claimed in late winter and early spring as the release cycle plays out. February and March are when you should be touring and ready to commit, moving fast when a well-located house opens. Houses right around campus go first. Lining up your release approval and roommates ahead of time lets you sign as soon as you find the right place.
If you miss that window, options thin out, though some come back in summer as graduating seniors clear out. Spring sublets and shares occasionally surface too. Don't assume a wave of listings will appear in August, because on a small hill with few rentals, it usually won't. Looking toward the West Ward or the riverfront can open up more standalone houses at gentler rates.
Right around campus, Victorian homes and tree-lined streets, walkable to class and in steady demand, so it runs on the higher side.
The historic district at the base of the slope mixes apartments above storefronts with easy access to Centre Square and the rivers.
The West Ward, a residential grid west of downtown, offers more standalone houses and gentler rates, while streets toward the Delaware riverfront stay calmer and scenic but a bit further from campus.
Common questions from students searching for housing.
Off-campus living is limited to released seniors, but when a room in a shared College Hill house opens up it usually runs about $600-$1,000/month per person. Older houses and the West Ward land at the lower end, while updated units close to campus or downtown sit higher. Whole apartments cost more since you cover the full place yourself.