At Sweetwater, we’ve helped hundreds of students find their perfect apartment. With a qualified leasing team and personalized tours, we can help you find your home-away-from-home in Gainesville.
Our leasing office is located inside Sweetwater on 1225 W. University Ave.
To help you make the most of your tour, we’ve written this guide on what to expect during your tour of Sweetwater, as well as how to prepare before and how to proceed after your tour.
Taking a Tour of Sweetwater
Before Your Tour
Sweetwater’s spacious lobby is the perfect spot to study, enjoy a cup of coffee and socialize with friends.
Before you stop by the leasing office, make a list of your priorities and preferences for housing. Do you already have roommates and know how many bedrooms you want? Do you want to have a connected bathroom? Is there a specific view you’re looking for? Knowing what you want in housing will help make your tour personalized, helpful and timely!
Here’s a list of things to consider:
- Price range
- Floor plan style (1×1, 4×4, 6×6, etc.)
- Amenities
- Windows
- Bathrooms
- Pets
- Parking
You should also bring a list of questions. Do your research! This will be a year-long commitment, so it’s important to know all the information you need. We’ve compiled a list of 15 questions to ask on a tour to help you get started.
Booking a Tour
Once you’ve made your list of priorities, preferences and questions, book a tour at our leasing office inside Sweetwater! The office is open from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, as well as 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Saturday, and 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. on Sunday. If you already have roommates in mind, try to find a time that works for all of you. This will help smooth the process since you will all get the same information. If you’re reading this and want to stop by the office now, we accept walk-ins as well!
You can plan to be on your tour for around 45 minutes. Though it may take less time than that, if you have a good idea of what you’re looking for, allotting 45 minutes to an hour gives you plenty of time to ask questions, discuss with your roommates, and start your application!
Coming In to the Office
When you’re ready for your tour, you’ll come to our beautiful leasing office inside of Sweetwater. You’ll be greeted by one of our Community Assistants (CAs) who will take you on the tour, and answer all your questions! They are experts on the property, so they can help you find a unit that suits you best.
Be sure to download our apartment tour checklist to help you evaluate your options.
One perk of your tour is getting to try handcrafted coffee or matcha from our in-house coffee bar, Daydreamer. Daydreamer is located inside Sweetwater, available for purchase to Sweetwater residents all year!
Daydreamer will be open from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday – Friday, and 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Sweetwater has an on-site coffee shop, Daydreamer, featuring hand-mixed coffee drinks, matcha and artisan pastries.
Start Your Tour!
The tour will start at the leasing office, conveniently located on the first floor of Sweetwater. Your tour will begin by passing by the mailroom, which will lead you into our expansive lounge and study area. As you continue through this space, you’ll arrive at Daydreamer, our in-house coffee bar. Daydreamer caters to residents and the public, offering a selection of coffee, matcha and pastries. Daydreamer offers plenty of seating, perfect for studying, socializing, or simply unwinding.
In our study mezzanine, you’ll find plenty of unique spaces for quiet study or collaboration.
After exploring the first floor, we’ll guide you to the second floor study mezzanine. The second floor features both open, collaborative spots and private study rooms. As you make your way through this space you will end at our fitness center. From weights to cardio, our facilities have it all. After exploring the fitness center, you will continue to our second floor elevator lobby and head to the 10th floor.
The tour continues as you make your way up to the 10th floor, which encompasses the pool deck, clubroom, yoga studio and saunas. After exiting off the elevators, you’ll head down the hallway to see Sweetwater’s saunas and dedicated yoga studio. After visiting these spaces, you will be led to our club lounge. With ample seating and mounted TVs, this is the perfect spot to watch the Gators on game day or host a movie night with friends. The clubhouse leads into our rooftop pool deck, which includes a sun shelf, a cabana with grills, and ample seating, making it the perfect spot to host.
After you’ve visited the pool deck, we’ll head back inside and make our way to tour our model unit, The Ella.
Looking at Floor Plans
After the walking portion of the tour, you’ll head back into the leasing office to explore floor plans. Since Sweetwater is almost fully occupied, you will view the floor plan renderings. Now is the time to pull out that list of priorities and preferences you made earlier! The CA working with you will ask you what kind of floor plans you’re interested in, and will use your list to help find the unit that suits you best.
You’ll begin discussing each floorplan you’re interested in, weighing pros and cons, and ultimately decide on a unit that fits your preferences the best. It’s important to remember that there might not be a floor plan that checks every single box, but use your CA as a resource to talk through your concerns so they can help you find a unit that is best for you.
Start Your Application
After you’ve chosen the floor plan that works best for you and your roommates, it’s time to start your application and secure your unit. The application should take you around 10 minutes to complete, and you can complete this in the office on an iPad. This way, as you’re going through the application, you can ask our team any questions you might have. Be sure to bring your driver’s license or government ID! If you’re an international student, I would highly recommend completing your application at Sweetwater in case you run into any questions or concerns as you complete it.
Guarantor Information
A portion of the application will ask you for your guarantor’s information. If you’re asking yourself what a guarantor is, it’s essentially someone like a parent or guardian who qualifies you to sign a lease, by co-signing the lease document. Most UF students don’t qualify on their own from their monthly income and credit score, so your guarantor is taking on the liability of the rental rate for you. Before starting your application, talk to your guarantor and get their information. Once you finish your portion of the application and lease, they will get an email with their portion to complete.
Signing Your Lease
Once you finish the application, you’ll be prompted to sign your lease. Read through it as you sign and ask questions as you go. Once you’ve signed the whole agreement, you’re a future Sweetwater resident! Congratulations!
I hope this gives you an idea of what to expect on a tour of Sweetwater, and how to make the most of your time in the leasing office! If you have any questions, or want to book a tour, contact the Sweetwater leasing team or stop by Sweetwater!
