Where students live
Huntington puts almost everything within a mile of campus. Sixth Avenue is the spine — The Village on Sixth is a seven-minute walk and is one of only two properties in town that lease by the bed. Seventh Avenue runs parallel with University Suites and University Village, nine to sixteen minutes out. Buffington Avenue holds the largest private landlord in the market, with over 200 units across apartments, houses and townhomes. Hal Greer Boulevard runs south past Barnett Commons, and 14th Street holds The Landing, Marshall's own affiliated building next to the Health Sciences campus. Anything on Riverside Drive is a three-mile drive rather than a walk. The critical framing: only two properties lease by the bed. Everything else is a whole-unit rent split privately between roommates, with joint-and-several liability on one lease.
Heads up — this school breaks the usual rules
- Marshall publishes no mattress dimensions anywhere — while publishing the desk (42-1/4" x 22-1/8" x 30-1/4"), the dresser, the closet, the window and even the bathroom to the inch. It says "Twin XL" on every hall page and never once gives a number. Anyone quoting "38 x 80" for Marshall is not getting that from Marshall.
- The refrigerator limit is 2.5 amps, not cubic feet. Mini-fridges are sold by cubic feet and amperage is often not on the box. A 2.5-amp ceiling generally rules out larger 4.0+ cu ft units, but Marshall never says so.
- Marshall Commons suites share ONE microwave between four to eight residents, and it must plug into a single dedicated outlet: "microwaves cannot be plugged into any other outlet in the entire suite." Coordinate with your suitemates before anyone buys one.
- All amplified audio is banned in rooms — "electrically amplified items, including musical instruments, microphones, surround sound" — which arguably prohibits a soundbar.
- Instant Pots, electric skillets, plain toasters and Nu Wave ovens are banned by name. Most schools permit a sealed Instant Pot.
- Extension cords and multi-outlet plugs are banned with no surge-protector exception, and microwaves must plug directly into the wall — so you cannot solve the outlet shortage with a power strip.
- Alcohol is banned regardless of age, and furniture with built-in outlets or USB ports is prohibited unless UL listed with a resettable breaker — which rules out most outlet-equipped headboards and nightstands.
- First-year halls cost the most and offer the least choice. A First Year double is $4,130 a semester against $3,249 for a double in Twin Towers or Buskirk, and freshmen — the cohort required to live on campus — have no cheaper room type published at all.
Buying the standard college checklist here will waste money — check the amperage on your fridge, and do not buy a power strip for the microwave.
Apartments & rentals students actually use
| Community | Distance | Units & rates | Furnished? | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Village on Sixth Avenue The cheapest confirmed per-bed rate in Huntington and the closest real student housing — furnished, with water, heat, trash, AC and internet included. Parking is $50 a month extra, and the 4-bedroom rate needs all four beds filled | 2101 Sixth Ave · 0.4 mi, 7-min walk | 1BR/1BA, 2BR/2BA, 4BR/2BA $449 (4BR) · $664 (2BR) · $1,124 (1BR) per bed · 625–1,192 sq ft | Furnished | apartments.com |
| The Landing at Marshall Marshall-affiliated and it satisfies the live-on requirement — fully furnished, utilities included. Note the pricing trap: two beds at $800 each is $1,600, but the whole 2-bedroom is $1,515, so a pair who already know each other should lease the unit, not two beds | 1130 14th St · "blocks" per Marshall, 1.2 mi per apartments.com | Studio; 2BR (leasable by bed or whole) Studio $1,020/unit · $800/bed or $1,515/unit (2BR) · ~275–550 sq ft | Fully furnished | marshall.edu |
| University Suites The cheapest one-bedroom within walking distance at $635 — an eleven-minute walk, and the three-bedroom at $1,155 splits to $385 a bed | 1540 7th Ave · 0.6 mi, 11-min walk | 1BR/1BA, 2BR/2BA, 3BR/2BA $635 · $810 · $1,155 per unit | Not stated | apartments.com |
| Herd Flats Unusual in offering three furnishing tiers on the same unit — unfurnished $800, self-furnished $850, furnished $1,000. That $200 gap is a clean way to price whether furnishing it yourself is worth the hassle | 1528 6th Ave · 0.5 mi, 9-min walk | 2BR/1BA $800–$1,000 per unit · 768 sq ft | Optional | apartments.com |
| University Village Apartments The cheapest rent in the market at $500 for a one-bedroom — a sixteen-minute walk. The two-bedroom at $700 splits to $350 a bed, the lowest effective figure found anywhere near Marshall | 1751 7th Ave · 0.9 mi, 16-min walk | 1BR, 2BR $500 · $700 per unit | Not published | apartments.com |
| Marshall Apartments The largest private landlord near campus — over 200 units across apartments, houses and townhomes, from $625. Worth calling directly rather than browsing, since the inventory does not show well online | 1908–1924 Buffington Ave · "within walking distance" | 2BR and up, incl. houses and townhomes From $625 per unit | Not published | marshallapartments.com |
| Barnett Commons Read the fine print — the 2-bedroom is 55-and-over age-restricted. Only the 3-bedroom at $850 is open to students, and at 800 sq ft it splits to about $283 a bed | 919 Hal Greer Blvd · 0.8 mi, 16-min walk | 2BR/1BA (55+ only); 3BR/1.5BA $740 (55+) · $850 (3BR) per unit · 650–800 sq ft | Unfurnished | apartments.com |
| Buffington Apartments On the same corridor as Marshall Apartments and priced a little above it — the distance is not published, so check before assuming it is walkable | 1909 7th Ave · distance not published | 2BR and up From $900 per unit | Not published | apartments.com |
| Riverside Landing Three and a half miles out, so this is a car commute — but the 1,029 sq ft three-bedroom at $975 is the most space per dollar in the market | 3224 Riverside Dr · 3.4 mi, ~8 min drive | 2BR/1BA, 3BR/2BA $715 · $975 per unit · 811–1,029 sq ft | Unfurnished | apartments.com |
Details compiled from public listings and property sites, August 2026. Rates and availability change every lease season — verify everything with the property.
How it compares to a dorm
A Twin Towers double is $3,249 a semester and the cheapest mandatory meal plan is $2,346, so a year of room and board runs about $11,190, or roughly $1,243 a month across nine months. The Village on Sixth at $449 a bed plus $50 parking is $499 a month with utilities included and food on you. Even the priciest whole-unit split — a three-bedroom at $1,155 — lands near $385 a bed. The gap is large, but the two-year live-on rule means it is a junior-year decision unless you qualify for one of the four published exemptions: commuting from a parent or guardian within 50 miles, financial hardship, a medical release, or reaching 60 credit hours.
What you'll need
Two properties here come furnished — The Village on Sixth and The Landing — so there you are shopping soft goods only. Everything else needs a full build: bed and mattress, seating, table, kitchenware. The Marshall-specific note is that you are leaving a bed whose size the university never published, so measure whatever you buy rather than assuming your dorm sheets transfer. And the appliance rules relax completely: the banned Instant Pot, electric skillet, toaster, extension cords, multi-outlet plugs, surround sound and outlet-equipped furniture are all fine in an apartment — and you can have a drink at 21.
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