Rental buildings near University of Winnipeg are not all student housing: the University’s Campus Living page offers furnished rooms for individual students and unfurnished apartments for student families, while each of the seven buildings below advertises its own rents on its operator’s site. This guide sets out what each one asks you to give up, whether that is pets, a lower rent, or included utilities. It is general information, not legal or financial advice. Prices and availability are as of the date this guide was published, and they change, so confirm every detail with the building before you apply.
Are the rental buildings near the University of Winnipeg only for students?
No. The University’s own Campus Living pages describe housing for students, but the seven buildings here are advertised on their operators’ own sites with prices. Three are tied to UWCRC 2.0 Inc., and four are rented by Mainstreet Equity Corp. and Sussex Realty.
The Campus Living page says, “Choose from our furnished rooms for individual students and unfurnished apartments for student families.” The family housing page gives priority to UWinnipeg students who are married or common law couples and single parents, and tells individual students living on their own to “apply for McFeetors dorms or Balmoral Houses.”
The University’s International Student Services page, which carries no date, has a heading for the UWinnipeg Community Renewal Corporation and says, “This UWinnipeg affiliated organization owns and operates a number of buildings close to campus,” naming Muse Flats and West Broadway Commons among them. The UWCRC page for Muse Flats lists UWCRC 2.0 Inc. as owner, West Broadway Commons’ site is labelled UWCRC 2.0 Inc., and the UWCRC project page for Solara Flats lists UWCRC 2.0 Inc. as project manager without saying who operates the building.
None of the pages for these three buildings says in so many words that the market suites are open to the general public, but each publishes suite prices with an Inquire button, so ask the building to confirm that you can apply. Affordable suites have their own rules: the Solara Flats project page says, “Affordable rent levels will be 59-69% of CMHC Median Market Rent for the neighbourhood,” and does not say who qualifies or which suites are affordable. The pages for the four other buildings mention no student requirement.
How we checked these buildings, and what the pages left out
A building made this list only if its operator’s own page showed it renting: suites marked available, a dated move-in, or published prices with an inquiry or availability button. Rent, pets, utilities, and parking follow each operator’s wording. Distances and walking times are the operators’ own claims, and none were measured. Every price in this guide is the one shown when it was published.
We treat the University as the campus at 515 Portage Avenue, the mailing address on its admissions page. Four buildings carry a campus claim in their operators’ own words, quoted below. The Princeton, Casa Loma, and Colony Apartments make none, so they are included as lower-rent alternatives that are renting now, and distance to class is yours to weigh. Residences at Portage Commons and The Princeton are on liv.rent’s building list as of September 2, 2026, but being listed was never a reason to include a building.
Mainstreet’s pages show “From” prices and a Check Availability button rather than named suites, and their metadata carries 2020 dates, so treat them as a reason to ask, not proof of a vacant suite. Sussex’s pages list named suites with move-in dates but carry metadata from 2024 and 2025. The UWCRC 2.0 Inc. and Sussex pages print rents such as “Rent: $899” without saying per month, and we read them as monthly amounts, so confirm the period. We left out Market Lands South, a building its page says is managed by UWCRC 2.0 Inc., because that page says, “We are expected to open in November 2026.”
Rent, pets, and utilities side by side
The lowest one-bedroom starting price is $873 a month at Residences at Portage Commons, and the highest one-bedroom price that a page ties to a unit type is $1,725 at West Broadway Commons. Three buildings say no pets outright, two carry a Pet Friendly label without rules, and two publish nothing on pets.
Cells quote the operators’ own wording, and “Not published” means the operator’s page was silent on that detail. Solara Flats’ rent column does not name unit types, and the two Mainstreet buildings’ rates are net of incentives, as their write-ups explain.
| Building | Address (as the operator gives it) | Operator | Unit types | Starting rent | Pets | Utilities included | Parking | Note |
| Residences at Portage Commons | 610 Portage Avenue | Mainstreet Equity Corp. | One- and two-bedroom | One-bedroom from $873 a month; two-bedroom rent not published | No pets (non-pet property) | Hot water, garbage collection, sewage, electricity, water, heat | Surface $100 a month; covered $140 a month | Operator: directly across from the University of Winnipeg; Check Availability button |
| The Princeton | 314 Broadway | Mainstreet Equity Corp. | Bachelor, one-bedroom, two-bedroom | Bachelor from $848; one-bedroom from $972; two-bedroom from $1,330 (each a month) | Pet Friendly label; rules not published | Not stated | Secure parking two minutes away, not operated by Mainstreet; $110 a month plus remote deposit; limited spots | No campus claim; Check Availability button |
| Solara Flats | 308 Colony St | UWCRC 2.0 Inc. | Studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom | Suites listed from $1,333; rent not tied to a unit type | Not published | Heat, water, electricity, internet (internet not in affordable units) | Not published; car co-op membership included | Operator: just steps from the University; 75 suites marked Available Now |
| Muse Flats | 290 Colony St | UWCRC 2.0 Inc. | Studio and one-bedroom priced; two- and three-bedroom named, not priced | Studio $1,210; one-bedroom $1,450; furnished premium one-bedroom $1,550 | Not published | All utilities; internet in market and premium units | “Parking Available”; cost not published | Operator: a block south of the University campus; now leasing |
| West Broadway Commons | 167 Colony Street | UWCRC 2.0 Inc. | Studio to three-bedroom named; two suites priced | Premium one-bedroom suite $1,725; market two-bedroom suite $1,800 | Pet Friendly label; rules not published | Heat, water, electricity; internet in premium, market, and luxury suites | Waitlist, priority for premium and luxury suites; cost not published | Operator: a short distance from the University; two suites listed |
| Casa Loma | 309 Sherbrook St. | Sussex Realty | One-bedroom | $899 (unit 20); $939 (units 38 and 57) | No pets allowed | Not stated | Outdoor parking; cost not published | No campus claim; two suites dated October 1, 2026, one December 1, 2026 |
| Colony Apartments | 221 Colony St. | Sussex Realty | Studio and one-bedroom | Studio $840; one-bedroom $956 and $960 | No pets allowed | Not stated | Outdoor parking; cost not published | No campus claim; move-ins November 1, November 15, and December 1, 2026 |
The seven buildings, one at a time
The first four write-ups follow the strength of each operator’s own campus wording, and the last three buildings make no campus claim.
Residences at Portage Commons: a campus claim, and no pets
Mainstreet Equity Corp. describes Residences at Portage Commons, at 610 Portage Avenue, as “directly across from the University of Winnipeg” and in “walking distance to Downtown Winnipeg.” The building also has a liv.rent building page.
The operator page lists a one-bedroom “From $873 /mo,” with a security deposit of $436.50. Its size is given as 536 square feet in the rate table and 515 in the property text. Rates are “net of applicable incentives and based on a one-year lease term,” and incentives “apply to new applicants only,” so ask what the rent is without the incentive. The operator calls the building a “non-pet property.”
Solara Flats: utilities included, and a higher price
Solara Flats, a 21-storey building at 308 Colony St, says on its home page, “Located just steps from the University of Winnipeg,” and describes studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments. On the floor plans page, all 75 suites are marked “Available Now” with an “Inquire” button.
The rents on that page are $1,333 (three suites), $1,585 (24 suites), $1,705 (15 suites), $1,980 (27 suites), $2,050 (three suites), and $2,070 (three suites), with no unit type or program shown, so there is no telling which suites are studios, one-bedrooms, or affordable-program units. UWCRC’s project page, which still gives an anticipated completion of Winter 2025, says 86 of 214 apartment units are set aside as affordable.
Utilities are covered: the home page says, “Centralized heat and air, Water, Hydro, and High-speed internet included (except for the affordable units),” and the amenities page lists heat, water, electricity, and internet as included. Neither page mentions pets or parking.
Muse Flats: furnished and unfurnished plans
UWCRC’s page calls Muse Flats, at 290 Colony St, a “brand new mixed-income, mixed-use building” with 119 residential suites, and says, “Muse Flats is now leasing, visit the website for more information.” The home page says, “Located a block south of the University of Winnipeg Campus.”
The floor plans page lists four plans: a studio (477 square feet) at $1,210, two market one-bedrooms (614 and 638 square feet) at $1,450 each, and a furnished premium one-bedroom (614 square feet) at $1,550. The home page also names two- and three-bedroom apartments, but no plan for them is listed, and no affordable suite appears.
The home page says “All Utilities Included,” and the amenities page lists a washer and dryer in suite and “Parking Available,” without saying what parking costs. Neither page mentions pets. That bundle of utilities, internet, and in-suite laundry comes at a higher rent than the lowest-priced buildings here.
West Broadway Commons: two priced suites and a parking waitlist
West Broadway Commons, at 167 Colony Street, calls itself “just across from the Legislative grounds” and “a short distance from the University of Winnipeg and Osborne Village” on its home page. The floor plans page lists two suites, each with an “Inquire Now” button: Suite 1101, a premium one-bedroom (635 square feet) at $1,725, and Suite K, a market two-bedroom (723 square feet) at $1,800.
The amenities page says, “Heat, water, electricity included,” and offers “Parking available (subject to a waitlist, priority with Premium/Luxury rental)” without a cost. A “Pet Friendly” heading comes with no rules, so ask for the pet terms in writing. With only two suites shown, a renter here may need to wait for the right one or ask about others.
The Princeton: a pet-friendly label, few details
Mainstreet Equity Corp.’s page for The Princeton, at 314 Broadway, places it “where The Forks and West Broadway neighbourhoods meet” and makes no claim about the University of Winnipeg. The building also has a liv.rent building page.
Rents start at $848 for a bachelor, $972 for a one-bedroom, and $1,330 for a two-bedroom, with security deposits of $424, $486, and $665. As at Portage Commons, rates are “net of applicable incentives and based on a one-year lease term,” and incentives “apply to new applicants only and cannot be combined with other offers.” Parking is separate: “Secure parking is available only two minutes away,” at $110 a month plus a remote deposit, with “Parking not operated by Mainstreet.”
“Pet Friendly” appears as a feature, but the Fees and Policies heading has nothing under it, so ask for pet rules, fees, and deposits in writing. No utilities are listed as included, and the page says utility inclusions are “subject to change without notice.”
Casa Loma: a heritage building, no pets
Sussex Realty’s page for Casa Loma, at 309 Sherbrook St., describes a “picturesque heritage building” located “on the corner of Sherbrook Avenue and Portage Avenue” and makes no claim about the University.
Three one-bedroom suites are listed: unit 20 at $899 and unit 38 at $939, both dated October 1, 2026, which has already passed, and unit 57 at $939 from December 1, 2026. Ask whether the first two are still free. The page says “No pets allowed,” “Outdoor parking available,” and “Controlled access and building security,” puts laundry on the second floor rather than in the suite, and does not mention utilities.
Colony Apartments: studios and one-bedrooms, no pets
Colony Apartments, at 221 Colony St., is a “charming heritage building” that is “just off Broadway” and “in the heart of West Broadway,” according to its page, which makes no claim about the University.
The studio (unit D) is $840 from November 1, 2026, the lowest published rent among the seven buildings. The one-bedrooms are unit 24 at $960 from November 15, 2026 and unit 15 at $956 from December 1, 2026. The page says “No pets allowed” and “On-site laundry facilities,” and does not mention utilities.
What does each choice cost?
Every building here asks you to give something up. The operator’s strongest campus claim comes with a no-pets rule, the included utilities at the UWCRC 2.0 Inc. buildings come with higher starting rents, and the lowest rents come with no pets or no stated utilities. The four notes below set out each trade without ranking the buildings.
A campus claim, or a pet
Residences at Portage Commons is the only building whose operator says it sits directly across from the University of Winnipeg, and it is a “non-pet property.” Casa Loma and Colony Apartments also say “No pets allowed” but make no campus claim. None of the four buildings that do not ban pets spells out its pet rules, so a renter with a dog or cat will need to ask for rules, fees, and deposits.
Included utilities, or a lower starting rent
The three UWCRC 2.0 Inc. buildings list heat, water, and electricity as included, with internet in most suites, and they start higher. The Muse Flats one-bedroom is $1,450 and the West Broadway Commons one-bedroom suite is $1,725, while Solara Flats starts at $1,333 without naming a unit type. The highest one-bedroom starting price at the four Mainstreet and Sussex buildings is $972 at The Princeton, so the cheapest UWCRC one-bedroom with a stated type costs $478 a month more. Residences at Portage Commons is the exception: it lists utilities as included from $873 a month, though that rate is net of incentives. The Princeton, Casa Loma, and Colony Apartments do not state what is included.
The lowest rents, or in-suite laundry and a newer building
The two lowest published prices are the Colony Apartments studio at $840 and The Princeton bachelor at $848. Casa Loma and Colony Apartments ban pets, state no utilities, and list on-site laundry facilities rather than a washer and dryer in the suite, while the higher rents at Solara Flats and Muse Flats, which their pages call new, come with no word on pets.
Furnished, or unfurnished
Furnished does not have to cost far more than unfurnished. According to liv.rent’s October 2026 Winnipeg rent report, the average furnished one-bedroom asking rent Downtown rose 3.2% to $1,316 in October from $1,276 in September, while the unfurnished one-bedroom average eased 0.8% to $1,311 from $1,322, so furnished units now ask slightly more than unfurnished ones Downtown. The report does not say which of its six regions covers the area around the University, so treat the Downtown figures as context only. For citywide context, it puts Winnipeg’s average unfurnished one-bedroom at $1,319 in October 2026, down 0.1% from September.
Muse Flats lists a furnished premium one-bedroom at $1,550 and a market one-bedroom of the same size (614 square feet) at $1,450. That $100 gap also reflects the premium label, so it doesn’t isolate what furniture costs. Landlords weighing whether to furnish a suite can check what the market pays with a free liv.rent rent estimate.
Which Manitoba rules and lease terms should you check before you sign?
In Manitoba, the Residential Tenancies Branch’s current guideline page says, “The 2027 rent increase guideline is 3.0 per cent, effective January 1, 2027,” and that tenants must get written notice at least three months before a rent increase takes effect. The Branch’s deposits fact sheet, dated December 2019, says a security deposit cannot be more than half of the first month’s rent. This is general information, not legal advice.
The guideline page, which carries no date, lists exemptions including “rental units in buildings first occupied after March 2005” and “rental units renting for $2,000 or more per month.” Solara Flats and Muse Flats, which their pages call new, and any suite at $2,000 or more, such as the $2,050 and $2,070 suites Solara Flats lists, could fall under those exemptions, so ask in writing whether your unit is covered.
The deposits fact sheet also says a pet damage deposit collected on or after August 1, 2014 “can be up to one month’s rent,” and that landlords must return deposits plus interest “within 14 days of the end of a tenancy.” Because the sheet dates from December 2019, confirm current limits with the Branch. Residences at Portage Commons lists a $436.50 security deposit, half of its $873 rent, and adds that deposits “may vary based on credit history, rental history, and risk assessment,” so ask for your exact deposit in writing.
The International Student Services page says, “Utilities might be separate or included,” so get what is included written into your lease, and it says the Manitoba Residential Tenancies Branch “recommends that you walk through the rental unit with the landlord.” It also asks, “Did you know your student fees include unlimited access to Winnipeg Transit from September to April?” That is the University’s wording, so check how it applies to you. Winnipeg Transit’s route details page for BLUE, which carries no date, lists stops named “Westbound Portage at Spence (U of W)” and “Eastbound Portage at Balmoral (U of Winnipeg).” Which building is closest to which stop, and how often buses run, is not covered here, so confirm the trip yourself before you sign.
For monthly numbers across Winnipeg’s six regions, browse liv.rent’s rent reports, and for area context see the neighbourhoods guides and the rental resources guides.
Is housing near the University of Winnipeg only for students?
No. The University’s Campus Living pages describe rooms and apartments for students, but the seven buildings in this guide advertise their own rents on their operators’ sites. Three are tied to UWCRC 2.0 Inc., whose sites use a name the University’s International Student Services page calls affiliated. Ask each building to confirm that you can apply.
Which rental buildings near the University of Winnipeg include utilities?
Residences at Portage Commons lists heat, electricity, and water as included. Solara Flats, Muse Flats, and West Broadway Commons list heat, water, and electricity, with internet in most suites. The Princeton, Casa Loma, and Colony Apartments do not state what is included.
Which apartments near the University of Winnipeg allow pets?
Residences at Portage Commons, Casa Loma, and Colony Apartments said no pets. The Princeton and West Broadway Commons carried a Pet Friendly label without published rules, and Solara Flats and Muse Flats said nothing about pets. Ask for pet rules, fees, and deposits in writing.
How much does it cost to rent near the University of Winnipeg?
One-bedrooms started at $873 at Residences at Portage Commons, $899 at Casa Loma, $956 at Colony Apartments, and $972 at The Princeton. Muse Flats listed a one-bedroom at $1,450 and West Broadway Commons at $1,725. Prices change, so confirm with the building.
Is a furnished apartment in downtown Winnipeg more expensive than an unfurnished one?
Only slightly, in liv.rent‘s October 2026 Winnipeg rent report: the Downtown average furnished one-bedroom asked $1,316, against $1,311 unfurnished. At Muse Flats, a furnished premium one-bedroom at $1,550 and a market one-bedroom of the same size at $1,450.
How much can a landlord raise rent in Manitoba?
Manitoba’s Residential Tenancies Branch lists a 2027 rent increase guideline of 3.0 per cent, effective January 1, 2027, with exemptions including buildings first occupied after March 2005. Tenants must get written notice at least three months before an increase takes effect. Confirm your unit’s status with the Branch.
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