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SFU First-Year Residences: Towers, Fees and the May 1 Guarantee
Most first-year students at SFU live in the Towers on Burnaby Mountain: North Towers, East/West Towers or Courtyard Residence. All are single or double rooms with shared washrooms and a required meal plan. If you come straight from high school, apply for housing and accept your SFU offer by May 1 to be guaranteed a room for September to April. Fall 2026 rooms cost $3,780 to $4,764 a term, plus $3,727 for the meal plan. Fall 2027 fees will be posted by December 1, 2026.
Sources checked October 2, 2026. View sources
Compare the first-year buildings
Every building has shared washrooms, shared lounges, shared pay laundry, Wi-Fi and basic furniture: a desk, chair, mirror, closet and mini-fridge. Areas not marked single gender are gender inclusive.
| Building | Rooms | Room size | Kitchen and meals |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Towers (Barbara Rae, Shadbolt and Pauline Jewett) | Traditional singles and doubles with shared bathrooms; some single-gender floors | About 118 sq ft | No kitchen; meal plan included |
| East/West Towers | Traditional singles with shared single-occupancy bathrooms; home to the Living Learning Communities | About 118 sq ft | No kitchen; meal plan included |
| Courtyard Residence | Traditional singles with shared single-occupancy bathrooms | About 132 sq ft | No kitchen; meal plan included |
| McTaggart-Cowan Hall | Traditional singles with a shared kitchen; first- and second-year | About 103 sq ft | Shared kitchen; meal plan optional |
| Townhouses | Four single rooms, shared kitchen, living room and two bathrooms; second year and up | About 112 sq ft | Shared kitchen; meal plan optional |
- North Towers single-gender floors: female on floors 7 and 8 of Barbara Rae and Pauline Jewett; male on floor 3 of Shadbolt.
- You can ask for a special community floor, but it depends on space and isn't guaranteed.
- SFU says most students coming straight from high school are placed in a Towers building.
What it costs: Fall 2026 fees
SFU charges per four-month term, and the meal plan is added on top of the room. These are the Fall 2026 fees, the latest SFU has posted. Fall 2027 to Summer 2028 fees will be posted by December 1, 2026.
| Building and room | Room per term | Meal plan per term | Term total |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Towers single | $3,780 | $3,727 | $7,507 |
| North Towers super single | $4,272 | $3,727 | $7,999 |
| North Towers single with bath | $4,764 | $3,727 | $8,491 |
| East/West Towers single | $4,600 | $3,727 | $8,327 |
| Courtyard Residence single | $4,600 | $3,727 | $8,327 |
| McTaggart-Cowan Hall single | $4,320 | Optional | $4,320 plus any plan |
| McTaggart-Cowan Hall super single | $4,880 | Optional | $4,880 plus any plan |
- A first-year contract covers fall and spring (September to April), so a full year is two terms.
- Term totals are our addition of SFU's room and 7-day meal plan fees.
- The Fall 2026 residence fee was due August 1, 2026.
The May 1 first-year guarantee
SFU guarantees a room for fall and spring to first-year students coming directly from high school. To qualify, you must:
- Apply for SFU on-campus housing by May 1.
- Accept your SFU admission offer by May 1.
- Be eligible to live in residence: an SFU or FIC student with no overdue fees, and a full-time undergraduate taking at least 9 credit hours in fall and spring.
- Be entering SFU directly from high school, without post-secondary study since you graduated.
How to apply
Fall applications open October 1. For Fall 2027, that's October 1, 2026 at 9 a.m. You don't need to wait for your admission decision to apply, and SFU recommends applying early because spaces are limited.
- Sign in to the MyPlace@SFU housing portal, or register if it's your first time, and choose Application.
- Pay the $50 non-refundable application fee to complete it.
- Offers go only to admitted students, on a rolling basis from February to August, based on priority and application date.
- When you get an offer, pay the $700 non-refundable confirmation payment by the deadline in the offer. It's applied to your first term's residence fees.
Living Learning Communities
SFU's Living Learning Communities are housed in East/West Towers and group students by shared interests. SFU lists an Indigenous Living Learning Community, a Beedie School of Business Undergraduate Community and a Leadership and Community Engagement community.
If you'd rather cook for yourself, McTaggart-Cowan Hall is open to first-year students and has a shared kitchen. Its meal plan is optional.
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Sources and updates
This independent guide summarizes the official information linked below. Availability, access rules and application cycles can change; check the relevant university page before making a decision.