Loading listings
Waterloo is a Cedar Valley city in northeastern Iowa, known as a healthcare and industrial hub anchored by the UnityPoint Health system and John Deere operations. The city sits on both banks of the Cedar River with a working-class character shaped by manufacturing and a growing healthcare sector. Downtown Waterloo along Commercial St has seen real investment, with renovated storefronts, arts venues, and a revitalized riverfront. Rents are low by any regional comparison, making Waterloo one of Iowa's more affordable cities for students and young professionals. For Allen College students, the proximity to the UnityPoint hospital complex on Heath St means daily life and clinical training happen within the same compact part of the city.
Kittrell Park borders Allen College's campus directly and is the top choice for students who want to walk or bike to class and the UnityPoint hospital complex. The neighborhood is predominantly residential with single-family homes and small multi-unit buildings, quiet streets, and easy access to the commercial corridor on Logan Ave.
The North End of Waterloo along Ansborough Ave and Lafayette St offers affordable rental housing in a stable residential setting within about a mile of campus. The area is popular with healthcare students and staff and has good bus access along the Route 2 corridor for students without a car.
Downtown Waterloo near Commercial St and the Waterloo Center for the Arts provides a more urban living environment with apartment conversions, proximity to restaurants and a grocery store, and an arts and events scene centered on the river corridor. It is about one mile from Allen College and a short drive or bus ride to campus.
Here's what you need to know about getting around Waterloo.
Waterloo's public bus system, Metro Transit, operates several routes connecting the downtown corridor, the Allen College area near Heath St, and the University of Northern Iowa in neighboring Cedar Falls. Service runs on weekdays and Saturdays with limited hours, so students relying entirely on transit should plan around the schedule carefully. The Route 2 corridor along Logan Ave is the most useful line for students living in the North End or Kittrell Park neighborhoods near Allen College. A car significantly expands your options in Waterloo, but transit is a workable fallback for routine campus trips.
Waterloo has a flat topography that makes it physically easy to bike, and the city has invested in a trail network along the Cedar River that connects several neighborhoods. The distance from most student-friendly rental areas to Allen College's campus on Heath St is under two miles, a manageable bike commute in good weather. Sidewalk quality varies across neighborhoods, with downtown and the near-north side being more walkable than outer residential streets. Winters in Waterloo are cold and snowy, so biking is a seasonal option for most of the year rather than a year-round strategy.
Parking is plentiful and inexpensive throughout Waterloo compared to larger metro areas. Most apartment complexes and rental houses near Allen College include off-street parking at no additional charge or for a modest monthly fee. Street parking is generally unrestricted in residential neighborhoods. The Allen College campus itself has designated student parking lots accessible with a valid permit, and permit costs are reasonable for an Iowa city of this size.
Common questions from students searching for housing.
Waterloo is an affordable city for renters. One-bedroom apartments near Allen College on Heath St typically rent for $700 to $1,000 per month, and two-bedroom units shared between two students often work out to $450 to $650 per person. Utilities are commonly billed separately and costs vary seasonally given Iowa winters.
Browse student housing near each Waterloo-area university.