Frequently Asked Questions
Are we Pet Friendly? Do we roommate match? Is parking free? Find answers to your most pressing questions right here on our FAQ page!
Rent Reporting is an optional credit reporting and financial tool provided by Homebody Insurance Agency, LLC and its affiliate Simplified Business Group, LLS, also known as Rent Dynamics. For a monthly fee of $8.95, Rent Reporting reports your rent and utility payments (if utilities are not included in your rent) to one or more consumer reporting agencies, such as Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. Each rent and utility payment made on time (even if it’s your guarantor making the payment) helps build your credit over time, payment by payment, month by month, year by year. Imagine what four years of paying rent on time can do for your credit score!
Your credit score is a number that tells lenders if you usually pay your bills on time, are able to keep
your credit card balances low, and are able to manage different types of credit. So when you make on-
time payments, your credit score may improve or remain the same if it’s already high. However, as
someone who rents an apartment, you’re not building your credit history by paying rent on time. Why
not? Because rent isn’t considered debt, and paying off debt is typically what builds credit. Signing up
for Rent Reporting changes that. It’s a tool you can use to your advantage because each on-time
payment is reported to the very credit bureaus that report these scores to car dealers, mortgage
lenders, a future landlord, etc.
Simply log in to your Resident Portal or download the Homebody: Better Living app on your phone or
tablet. Click on Rent Reporting, where you’ll see an agreement stating the terms of this service. Be sure
to read the agreement carefully and discuss it with your guarantors before signing it. Remember that
there is a monthly fee that you’ll pay directly to Rent Reporting, not to College Town Communities.
After you enroll in Rent Reporting, you can cancel the service at any time, for any reason … or no
reason at all! Enrollment in Rent Reporting is completely separate from your Lease Agreement. If you
decide to cancel, you can cancel using the Homebody app, by sending a written notice of termination to
Homebody at 4205 Chapel Ridge Road, Lehi, Utah 84043 – ATTN Rent Reporting Service Charge, or by
contacting Homebody directly at service@homebody.com. You must cancel no later than ten days
before the end of the month to avoid being charged for the following month.
More information can be found online at https://www.homebody.com/products/rent-reporting. In
addition to learning about Rent Reporting here, we encourage you to click on the various tools on the
Homebody website to learn more about money management. What’s the highest credit score possible?
How can I improve my credit score? What credit score do I have to have to buy a car? Or even a house?
It’s never too soon to begin thinking about what your financial future holds!
The Rail Yard: Please call us at (302) 562-6888 or email us at TheRailYard@CollegeTownCommunities.com
The Varsity: Call us to set up a tour at (302) 456-9267 or email us to set up a tour at Varsity@CollegeTownCommunities.com
At the Rail Yard, if you already have another student that you know you would like to live with, you will be placed with them, within the same apartment. If you are looking by yourself, you will be put on our “Roommate Needed List” and matched with other single tenants of the same gender using our Roommate Matching System.
At The Varsity, all leases are Joint and Several meaning all tenant groups will go on the same application when applying and if approved as a group will appear together on the joint and several lease.
The Rail Yard: Yes, all units are fully furnished with a leather sectional sofa, coffee table, entertainment stand, 55” SMART TV in every living room, dining table with chairs, bar stools, full-sized bed, hypoallergenic mattress, dresser, desk and desk chair. Some units also include additional furniture in the bedrooms including loveseat, entertainment stand and 42” SMART TV. See Floor Plans & Pricing for detail.
The Varsity: The Varsity has both furnished and unfurnished units. Please contact us to inquire about both.
The Rail Yard: All units include a designer kitchen with full-sized stainless steel appliances. Including refrigerator, a range/stove, garbage disposal and dishwasher. Plus every unit has a washer and dryer.
The Varsity: All kitchens are supplied with a full-sized refrigerator, dishwasher, and stove. Plus every unit has a washer and dryer.
The Rail Yard: Dedicated high speed internet with password protected WiFi, water, sewer and trash and all included.
Resident pays for electric, which is billed through the leasing office. (ALL bills stay out of the resident’s names!)
The Varsity: All utilities are included in the rental amount, excluding electric. Residents must put the electricity in their name through the city.
The Rail Yard: Dedicated high speed internet with password protected WiFi, water, sewer, trash, 24/7 emergency maintenance, access to the on-site leasing office, secure mail and package storage, fitness center, café with self-serve Starbucks coffee, print lounge with free WiFi, and access to The Rail Yard Lounge. The lounge is located on the 2nd floor of the Main Street Galleria near The Green on campus.
The Varsity: Internet, water, sewer, trash, and 24/7 emergency maintenance.
The Rail Yard: $0 security deposit!
The Varsity: $0 security deposit!
Rent is to be paid by the 1st of every month of your contract. Arrangements can be made to pay a full semester in advance or a full year in advance if that is desired by the tenant.
Rent payments can be made by check, money order, wire transfer, credit or debit cards (No cash will be accepted) in the Leasing Office or online through your Resident Portal account. Most debit cards have a daily limit for charges, so check with your bank to be sure you have the ability to make large payments before attempting payment. Convenience fees will apply to any online payment and vary depending on your payment method. College Town Communities splits these fees with you and pays half, so the fee you pay is actually half of the entire fee. Checks are the cheapest way to pay!
Onsite parking is available for residents at NO additional charge. Every resident MUST obtain a Parking Permit Sticker from the Leasing Office in order to be permitted to park in the onsite parking lot. Any vehicle parked in The Rail Yard or The Varsity parking lot without a parking sticker will be towed upon discovery. These actions are taken to preserve safe and well-lit parking for our residents.
Any student enrolled at the University of Delaware campus.
Any resident is allowed to have a guest visit or spend the night at any time without the need to register or sign them in. However, a guest is NOT allowed to stay for more the 3 days at a time. Roommate consideration must be taken into account with all visitors. Guests must be accompanied by the resident whom they are visiting at ALL times when inside the apartment.
Leasing Office: Located at 321 Hillside Road, Newark DE, our fully staffed leasing office is open from 8am-7pm everyday.
After Hours: All residents are to call the On-Call phone number 302-456-9267 for any after-hours issues or concerns.
Parking Passes: Each resident that is interested in keeping a vehicle on property must register the vehicle through the Leasing Office. Each resident is assigned a numbered parking pass AND a numbered parking spot that is then tracked through our software management system and monitored by BOTH our on-site staff and contracted towing service. Any vehicle found to be parking on property without a Resident Parking Pass or Registered Guest Parking Pass will be towed upon discovery.
Lighting: Both parking lot and building entry lighting are set to be on from Dusk ‘til Dawn every day, any time of year.
Security Cameras: Security cameras are located throughout the facility covering outdoor common areas as well as parking areas. Security cameras cannot stop something from happening, but they are an excellent deterrent against wrong doing.
Fire Protection: The Rail Yard and The Varsity have a hardwired, interconnected fire protection system in each unit. Every unit is also provided a fire extinguisher, either under the kitchen sink or adjacent to the kitchen hanging on the wall. All extinguishers are inspected annually by a 3rd party fire protection company to make sure that they are in working order.
The Varsity residents choosing to live alone or two to a two bedroom will have their own bedrooms. The Rail Yard residents also have their own private bathroom!
The Varsity residents who do not have a roommate will have a private bathroom.
All residents of The Rail Yard will have private bathrooms!
The Rail Yard: Each resident will have their own lease per bedroom.
The Varsity: The Varsity is rented by the unit.
The Rail Yard is one block from the University of Delaware campus.
The Varsity is located a half mile from the University of Delaware campus.
The Rail Yard and The Varsity are animal-friendly facilities. Any resident bringing an animal/pet MUST complete the Pet Addendum and pay the animal security deposit prior to bringing the animal into the apartment.
Following guidelines pursuant to the Federal Fair Housing Act and your state’s Human Relation Commission, College Town Communities is committed to making reasonable accommodations to allow a Service Animal or Emotional Support Animal (ESA) to live with a resident in the Leased Premises. Applicants and current residents requesting such accommodations must contact the Leasing Office prior to bringing the Service Animal or ESA on property, complete all necessary paperwork required by your state’s Human Relations Commission, and be granted written permission by Landlord in order to do so. More information regarding your rights and responsibilities to allow a Service Animal or Emotional Support Animal to live with you in the Leased Premises can be found here.
There is a free washer and dryer in every unit.
The Rail Yard: Leases for the 2026-27 school year will start on August 12, 2026.
The Varsity: The Varsity has two lease options. Leases will start on either June 11, 2026 or August 6, 2026. Contact Leasing Office for the potential of an alternate move-in date.
The Rail Yard: We offer both school-year leases and full-year leases!
2026-27 school-year leases run through May 27, 2027, and full-year leases run through July 22, 2027.
The Varsity: We offer two 12-month leasing options at The Varsity. Earlier leases begin on June 11, 2026 and end on May 26, 2027. Later leases begin August 6, 2026 and run through July 16, 2027. Inquire with the Leasing Office for further information.
Background checks are performed on every student who wants to live at College Town Communities. A minimally invasive credit check is performed separately on the parental guarantor for each tenant. There is no cost to the tenant or the guarantor for this process.
No, there is no fee to apply to live at The Rail Yard or The Varsity. There is, however, a $299 Administrative/Facilities Fee once you have decided to complete a lease to live at either property.
The Administrative/Facilities Fee is a nonrefundable annual fee due at lease signing for all applicants and renewals. The fee covers the online application process, renewal lease generation, resident and guarantor screening, on-site security, annual lock programming, 24-7 access to the online Resident Portal, security camera monitoring and maintenance, after-hour call center services, and maintenance of all amenity spaces.
The Administrative/Facilities Fee is a nonrefundable annual fee due at lease signing for all applicants and renewals. The fee covers the online application process, renewal lease generation, resident and guarantor screening, on-site security, annual lock programming, 24-7 access to the online Resident Portal, security camera monitoring and maintenance, after-hour call center services, and maintenance of all amenity spaces.
Assuming you are of the legal age, you may consume alcohol in your apartment. No alcohol is permitted in the outdoor areas and we expect tenants to follow all property guidelines and state/local laws.
No. The properties are already painted.
You may decorate your apartments with posters, tapestries, holiday lights, etc. Please use thumb tacks or small nails when hanging things on the walls. Do not use screws or long nails as there is a variety of mechanical services behind that walls that could be damaged. Do not use Tape, Glue, Gummy poster hangers, 3M double-sided sticky pads, etc. Do not use wall decals, as they will de-laminate the face of the drywall. Any unnecessary damage to the townhouse walls could be deducted from your security deposit.
The Rail Yard and The Varsity do not provide bedding. Every unit will include mini blinds on each window and you may add window treatments if you desire, but the blinds must stay in place.
The Rail Yard and The Varsity are solely rented to University of Delaware Students. We work closely with the University of Delaware campus but are a privately owned company.
Yes. You may use financial aid proceeds or any other 3rd party payment process to pay for your Rent at any of our facilities. Typically financial aid proceeds are disbursed directly to the student who in turn can then use those proceeds to pay for housing.Please contact us to learn more.
The Rail Yard payments should be made out to: College Town Communities
The Varsity payments should be made out to: Varsity Townhomes
