At least thirty days prior to your move out date, submit the Notice of Intent to Vacate via My Housing for Faculty & Staff to notify the Faculty & Staff Housing Office of your plans to vacate your rental unit.  Merwick Stanworth residents should notify the American Campus Communities Leasing Office (609) 924-3000.

My Housing for Faculty & Staff

• Make plans for storage.
• Have the U.S. Postal Service forward your mail.
• Remove your name from your mailbox.
• Notify your utility companies of your move date.
• Clean the stove and on some models, under the stove top.
• Clean the oven.
• Clean the refrigerator and freezer.
• Clean the bathroom, including the tub and all tile surfaces.
• Broom clean the unit.
• Remove items from storage.
• Remove all personal belongings from your unit.
• Place discarded items in the appropriate receptacles.
• Return keys, including your mailbox key.
• Close & lock all windows.
• Lock your unit when you leave. Do not turn the heat off. Set heat to 60 degrees.

Review the section below "Prepare Your Rental Unit for Inspection" for specific cleaning requirements.

Change Your Address

First-class mail

Complete a change of address form at the U.S. Postal Service website.

U.S. Postal Service

Magazines and newspapers

Contact the subscription department to report a change of address three weeks prior to your move. The U.S. Postal Service will not forward second class mail.

Packages

The U.S. Postal Service, FedEx, and other package carriers will not forward packages received after you have vacated your apartment.

Notify Utility Companies

Contact utility providers prior to your vacate date to notify them of your move and discontinue service in your name. If you fail to notify your service providers, they will continue to bill you.

Gas and electric

If you pay for gas and/or electric, contact PSE&G to notify them of your move. Do not shut off service - service should be transferred back to The Trustees of Princeton University.

Water

If you pay for water service, contact New Jersey American Water to notify them of your move. Do not shut off service - service should be transferred back to The Trustees of Princeton University.

Cable TV

Contact your provider to cancel service.

Telephone

Contact your provider to cancel service.

For details on discontinuing utility service, see "Utilities" under "Resident Services."

Resident Services > Utility Services

Plan for Moving and Storage

Rental vans

If you need a rental van, you should make a reservation at least two weeks prior to your move date. Keep in mind that rental vans are often in high demand at the end of the month. These truck rental companies provide service in the Princeton area:

• Budget Truck Rental
• Penske
• Ryder
• U-Haul

Moving and storage

Many moving companies offer boxes and packing supplies for sale, but you can also buy them at Staples, the Office Depot and the UPS Store. These companies provide moving and storage services in the Princeton Area:

• Atlas Worldwide
• Bohren's Moving and Storage
• Princeton NJ Movers
• Princeton Van Service

Storage only

• Access Self Storage
• CubeSmart
• Extra Space Storage
• Princeton Self Storage
• Public Storage

Prepare Your Rental Unit for Inspection

Pre-vacate inspection (by request only)

Within ten days of receiving your notice to vacate, upon request, housing staff will perform a pre-vacate inspection to assess and plan for maintenance in your rental unit. You do not have to be present for this inspection. When the inspection has been completed, the inspector(s) will leave an entry notice. If you have pets or require an appointment for this inspection, please contact the Faculty & Staff Housing Office.

Post-vacate inspection

After vacating your apartment, housing staff will inspect your apartment for cleanliness and condition.

The general rule

Your rental should be returned to the condition in which you found it at check-in. You will not be charged for normal wear and tear, holes in the wall the circumference of a pencil or smaller and chips around holes caused from weak plaster.

To avoid a fine or charge

Read the "Before You Go" Check List to understand your responsibility for cleaning your apartment and removing your property.

Charges for cleaning and repairs

Tenants are charged if basic cleanliness and condition criteria are not met. Fees will be deducted from your security deposit. The most common charges are for:

• Cleaning dirty ovens and stoves.
• Removing abandoned items, including items left in garages and storage areas.
• Repairing holes in walls, ceilings, and floors.
• Reinstalling windows, removed to install air conditioners.
• Cleaning excessively dirty bathroom, floors, and walls.
• Lock changes required when keys were not returned. All keys signed out during your tenancy must be returned when you vacate.
• Painting required when a wall has to be returned to the standard color.

Return Your Key

On or before your vacate date you may return your keys to the:

• Key drop-off box by the A Level of New South. Key envelopes are provided.

Or you may leave them on the kitchen counter of the unit you are vacating if you can secure the unit safely.

Failure to return keys

If you do not return all keys signed out during your tenancy, you will be charged for a lock change which will be deducted from your security deposit. Standard lock changes in University-owned rental properties are mandatory when:

• A key is lost.
• A loaner key has not been returned to the Faculty & Staff Housing Office.
• A key is not returned at check out.
• A lock is not working properly and cannot be repaired.

The fee for a lock change due to an unreturned key is based on the number of cores that the key was able to open, and could range from $75 to $150 or more. There is no fee for repairing a broken lock.

Final rent payments

Make your final rental payment by check by mail or use this opportunity to leverage electronic payments when possible.

Mail to:
Princeton University
Rents and Mortgages Department
701 Carnegie Center, Suite 436
Princeton, NJ 08540

Final rent payment questions

Please direct your questions regarding rent payments to the Office of Finance & Treasury, Rents and Mortgages Department.

Office of Finance & Treasury

Security Deposit Refunds

Security deposit refunds

If you are owed a security deposit refund, it will be returned to you within four weeks after your official vacate date. If you received your salary by direct deposit, the Office of Finance & Treasury will attempt to direct deposit your security deposit refund. If for any reason they cannot direct deposit the funds, they will mail a check to your forwarding address.

Direct Deposit

You can sign up for direct deposit (US bank accounts only) via the HR Self Service webpage.  Once you sign up for direct deposit, your paychecks and any other checks you receive from the University, such as a reimbursement, automatically will be deposited in your bank account.

HR Self Service

Direct Deposit Signup

Your forwarding address

If the treasurer's office is unable to direct deposit your security deposit for any reason, a check will be mailed to your forwarding address. To receive a security deposit refund by mail you must provide a forwarding address. If you do not provide a forwarding address the check will be mailed to the last known address in our files which is your rental unit address.

There are a variety of opportunities to recycle and donate items on and off campus before moving out of faculty/staff housing.  Refer to the University's sustainability website for more details.

Recycling Unwanted Property

Charitable Organizations (PDF)