Fees and charges

Learn about the fees and charges involved with applying for and living in a hall of residence.

Deposit

When you accept an offer of a place in a hall, you’ll need to pay a deposit. This is approximately $1,000 and it covers your:

  • activities fee
  • administration fee
  • bond.

If you then decide not to come to the University and withdraw from the contract before the withdrawal date (usually two days after NCEA results are published), the activities fee and bond will be refunded but the administration fee will not.

If you are not coming to University and withdraw after the withdrawal date, you will be refunded your bond but will forfeit your activities and administration fees.

Accommodation fees

You pay your accommodation fees in instalments in advance. Most halls charge monthly fees and you’ll be charged your first month before moving in.

New Zealand students will not receive their StudyLink assistance or any scholarship funds early enough to pay the first hall instalment, and it won’t cover the full cost of the rest of your instalments, so you’ll need to budget for this.

Learn more about the halls of residence payment schedules.

If you are staying in a hall for Trimester 1 only, your fee will include an additional levy of 10 percent to cover the cost of finding a replacement resident for the hall.

Moving out of a hall early

If you move out of your hall early:

  • you or your guarantor (if you have one) will need to pay $500 for breaking the contract
  • you will be liable for the accommodation fees unless (and until) a suitable replacement moves in. Vacancies in halls are filled in the order residents move out and are not tagged to particular rooms. It’s possible a new resident may move into your room while your hall vacancy is still open.

Additional costs

In some independent living halls, there may be additional charges for electricity and internet. These charges will be clearly shown in the fees and charges schedule.

Financial assistance

You can get help with budgeting for your hall instalments, find budgeting tools, and get a comprehensive range of financial information and support from the University’s Manage your money web pages.

Book an appointment with a student finance adviser.

Scholarships

Another way to help pay for your hall accommodation is to apply for a scholarship. Find out about our school-leaver scholarships and search our scholarships database.

There are also two accommodation scholarships: