FAU is already having trouble convincing enough students to take advantage of its on-campus housing. The opening of an off-campus complex for students means that the task will become even more daunting in the near future.

An apartment complex formerly known as Boca Sol has been fully revamped and now serves as an off-campus housing option for FAU students. The building, now known as University Square, will be located on N.W. 20th Street, only a mile from campus and within walking distance of Publix and the popular college bar Night Owl.

The University Square website lists a one bedroom, one bathroom apartment for $1,010 per month. There are two other housing options to select from: a two bedroom, one bathroom arrangement for $799 per month, and a one bedroom, one bathroom large suite for $1,050 per month.

By comparison, a studio single in the on-campus housing complex University Village Apartments is $4,500 per semester, which averages about $1,500 per month. A four bedroom apartment in Innovation Village Apartments is $4,800 per semester, split between four people.

A Craiglist posting from early May 2014 says these rooms will be ready by August of this year. Another brand new apartment complex, called University Park, also located on 20th Street, is also opening in August 2014. University Park was originally scheduled to open in mid-2013 but was pushed back for reasons unknown.

The creation of University Park was met with some opposition by FAU officials who saw off-campus housing as a deterrent to their plan to increase the amount of students who lived on campus, according to the Sun Sentinel.

During the 2011-2012 academic year, just 12 percent of FAU students lived on campus — the new goal was set at 20 percent, according the Sun Sentinel. The latest annual report from FAU Housing, which comprises the 2012-2013 year, shows a slight increase: 15 percent of the FAU student body lived on the Boca campus.

The introductions of University Square, University Park (opening in summer 2015 according to the South Florida Business Journal) and the already-open Addison Park mean that there are three off-campus apartment complexes that serve FAU students.

Check back at upressonline.com for more updates. Hat tip to the FAU Die Hard Blog.