UChicago 12 month leases: full-year lease options

A full-year lease gives you something a semester sublease can't: one address, one rent and no scramble to find a new place in June. That's why UChicago 12 month leases are a common choice for students settling into Chicago for the longer haul. Every listing below runs on a 12-month year lease, and you can browse more on the Chicago listings page.

It's late October, which is a good time to start looking. Some full-year places open up mid-year when a tenant moves on, and getting an early sense of prices helps when the main search for next fall heats up. Here are five current options, all posted by owners, along with what to check before you sign a year-long commitment.

Begin your search at Off-Campus Universe, where you can browse current listings near Chicago.

3bed/2 bath Washington Park Condo is an unfurnished three-bedroom, two-bathroom condo listed at $2,100/month. It's listed as 5 to 10 minutes by car from campus and runs on a 12-month year lease. The lease timing is listed as 10/26/2026 and the place is marked as available now, but that date has just passed, so confirm the current move-in date with the owner. If you're planning to share, ask how the owner handles multiple names on one lease.

Lakefront Living, Minutes from the Quad is an unfurnished one-bedroom, one-bathroom condo at $2,300/month. It's listed as 5 to 10 minutes by car from campus, on a 12-month year lease, and marked as available now with a listed date of 10/1/2026. Since that date is behind us, ask the owner when you could realistically move in and when the 12 months would end.

Modern 2 Bd/1 Ba Near U of Chicago is an unfurnished two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment listed at $1,925/month, 5 to 10 minutes by car from campus. It runs on a 12-month year lease, and the timing is listed as Until occupied. That wording isn't a date, so ask the owner when the lease would start and whether there's flexibility on the start month.

East Bronzeville is the only furnished option here, a three-bedroom condo with 2.5 bathrooms at $3,300/month. It's listed as more than 10 minutes by car from campus, on a 12-month year lease with a listed start date of 11/1/2026. A furnished full-year lease can make sense if you're arriving from out of state, so ask for a list of what's included.

Hyde Park Vintage Apartment is an unfurnished three-bedroom condo with 1.5 bathrooms, listed at $3,000/month. It's 5 to 10 minutes by car from campus and runs on a 12-month year lease starting 11/1/2026. Ask the owner how heating and other utilities are billed, since a Chicago winter can change your monthly costs noticeably.

What a 12-month lease near UChicago gets you

These five listings range from $1,925/month for a two-bedroom apartment to $3,300/month for a furnished three-bedroom condo. Four are condos and one is an apartment; four come unfurnished. Bedroom counts run from one to three, so the per-person picture changes a lot depending on how many people share the rent.

Distance is fairly consistent. Four are listed as 5 to 10 minutes by car from campus and one is listed as more than 10 minutes by car. That means price and space will probably drive your decision more than location within this group.

Because every one of these is a full-year commitment, the real question is whether your plans fit twelve months. If you'll be away for the summer, ask each owner up front whether subletting is allowed and what their approval process looks like.

A full-year lease also changes how you should read the price. On a semester sublease, a high monthly rent is a short-term cost. Over twelve months, even a gap of a few hundred dollars a month adds up to thousands by the end of the lease, so it pays to compare carefully before you sign rather than after.

Furnishing matters more on a long lease, too. With four unfurnished options here, budget for a bed, a desk and kitchen basics if you don't already own them. Buying used at the start of the year and reselling when you leave can keep that cost down, but factor it in when you compare an unfurnished unit with the furnished one.

UChicago 12 month leases: what to check before you sign

Before you commit to any of these UChicago 12 month leases, read the full lease and note the exact start and end dates. A lease that starts in November will end in November, which may not match your academic calendar, so think about where you'd go next and when.

Ask about the money in detail. Find out the deposit amount, what's due at signing, whether utilities are included and how rent increases are handled at renewal. For shared units, ask whether each person signs the lease and how rent is collected, since that affects what happens if a roommate leaves early.

Finally, ask about early termination and subletting. Plans change, and a clear policy on breaking the lease or finding a replacement tenant can save you a lot of stress later in the year. Get those answers in writing, not just over the phone.

It's also smart to ask each owner how they handle maintenance across a full year. Who do you contact if the heat stops working in January, and how quickly do they usually respond? An owner who answers clearly and in writing before you sign is often the same owner who answers clearly once you're living there.

One more practical step: put the five listings side by side with their prices, bedroom counts, furnishing and start dates. Divide each rent by the number of people who'd share it, then add an estimate for utilities. That gives you a fair comparison between a one-bedroom on its own and a three-bedroom split between friends.

Tips for signing a full-year lease near UChicago

• Confirm the exact start and end dates with the owner, especially where the listed date has passed or isn't a specific date.

• Ask whether subletting is allowed during the lease and what approval the owner requires.

• Get a written breakdown of rent, deposit, fees and which utilities you'll pay each month, including heating in winter.

• Walk through the unit before signing and record any existing damage with dated photos.

Ready to find your place? Browse all listings at Off-Campus Universe.

This article is provided by an independent housing resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the University of Chicago.