Housing.Cloud Glossary & Style Guide

This comprehensive glossary defines all key terms and concepts used in Housing.Cloud. Terms are organized alphabetically for quick reference.

Use your browser's search function (Ctrl+F or Cmd+F) to quickly find specific terms.

A

Term	Definition
Action Items	Tasks or to-dos displayed to residents on their dashboard that require attention (e.g., complete application, sign documents, pay fees).
Animals	The admin section for managing emotional support animals (ESA) and service animal documentation and approvals.
Attachments	Files uploaded and associated with notes, applications, or profiles. Maximum 3 attachments per note. Students can view their attachments in the portal's "My Attachments" section.
Announcement	A broadcast message sent to residents or groups via email or notification. Also known as: broadcast, mass communication
API Key	A unique identifier used to authenticate and authorize access to Housing.Cloud's API for integrations.
Applicants	The admin section for viewing and managing all housing applications.
Applicability Tags	Tags that control who can access cycles, phases, or forms using logical operators: AND Logic: User must have all specified tags OR Logic: User must have at least one specified tag Exclude: Users with these tags are blocked from access
Application	A formal request for housing submitted through Housing.Cloud.
Application Status	The current state of a housing application. Possible values: Started: Application initiated but not yet submitted Submitted: Application finalized and sent for review Approved: Application accepted for housing Resident: Applicant is now an active resident Waitlist: Applicant queued for future availability Rejected: Application declined Cancelled: Application withdrawn Archived: Application closed and stored in history
Application Tags	Cycle-specific tags applied during an application (e.g., "Fall 2024 Applicant"). See also: Profile Tags, Tag
Assignment	The placement of a resident into a specific room, bed, or housing unit. Also known as: placement See also: Auto-Assignment, Manual Assignment, Self-Assignment
Assistant	The AI-powered chat feature accessible from the sidebar for help and guidance.
Auto-Assignment	A process where the system automatically assigns rooms based on rulesets and preferences. See also: Manual Assignment, Self-Assignment, Ruleset

B

Term	Definition
Batch Operation	A background process that performs actions on multiple records simultaneously (e.g., bulk status updates, mass tag assignments). Also known as: bulk operation
Bed	An individual sleeping space within a room; the smallest assignable unit in Housing.Cloud. Also known as: bed space
Bulk Actions	Administrative tools for performing actions on multiple selected records at once (e.g., Update Status, Add Tags, Export).
Bed Status	The current state of a bed in inventory. Possible values: Assigned: Bed assigned to a resident but not yet occupied Occupied: Bed currently occupied by a resident Blocked: Bed intentionally restricted from assignment by staff Unavailable: Bed not available for assignment (e.g., maintenance, decommissioned)
Blocked	An inventory status indicating a bed or room is intentionally restricted from assignment by administrators. See also: Bed Status
Building	A physical structure containing multiple housing units or rooms. Also known as: residence hall, dormitory See also: Inventory Hierarchy
Buildings	The Inventory subsection for managing all building structures and their configurations.

C

Term	Definition
Check-In	The process of officially moving into a housing assignment. Also known as: move-in
Check-Out	The process of officially vacating a housing assignment. Also known as: move-out
Charge Codes	The Setup section for configuring billing codes and cost categories used in financial transactions. Also known as: cost codes, billing codes
Checklist	A list of required items or tasks to complete before submitting an application or during move-in/out. Also known as: task list, to-do list
Communications	The admin section for managing messages, emails, and notifications sent to residents.
Copy Cycle	A feature that duplicates an existing cycle's configuration for a new term, saving setup time.
Cycle	A defined housing period or term (e.g., academic year, semester). Also known as: housing cycle, term See also: Resident Cycle, Non-Resident Cycle, Cycle Phase
Cycle Phase	A distinct time period within a housing cycle with specific activities. Common phase types include: Application, Roommate (matching), Room Selection, Lottery, Room Swap, Move Management, and Meal Plan Selection. Also known as: phase Note: Phase dates define activity windows, while Residence Start/End Dates define when students actually live in housing.

D

Term	Definition
Dashboard	The main overview page showing key information and actions. Also known as: home
Document	Any file uploaded to support an application, such as a lease agreement or identification. Also known as: file, attachment
Document Templates	The Setup section for creating reusable document formats for leases, agreements, and forms requiring signatures.
Door Key	A physical or electronic key for accessing a resident's assigned room. Status values: Unissued, Issued, Borrowed, Broken, Lost, Archived. See also: Key Management

E

Term	Definition
Emergency Contact	A designated person to notify in case of emergency.
Events	The admin section for creating and managing resident events and activities. Also known as: programs, activities
ESA	Emotional Support Animal - an assistance animal that provides emotional support to a resident. See also: Animals
Exclusive Tags	A tag category setting that allows students to have only one tag from that category (e.g., only one "Class Year" tag). See also: Tag Category
Export	The process of extracting data from Housing.Cloud into a downloadable file format (e.g., spreadsheet, CSV). See also: Import, Bulk Actions
External Term Code	An identifier that links a Housing.Cloud cycle to the institution's SIS term for billing and data synchronization. See also: SIS ID, Integrations

F

Term	Definition
Fee	A charge associated with housing, applications, or services. Also known as: charge
Finance	The admin section for managing payments, billing, and financial transactions. Also known as: billing, payments
Flex Points	A flexible spending balance associated with meal plans that can be used for dining purchases. The terminology can be customized per institution in System Configuration.
Floor Plan	A visual diagram showing the layout of rooms and spaces within a building. Also known as: layout
Field Management	The Setup section for configuring custom profile fields and data collection settings.
Form	A structured document or template used to collect information from users.
Form Element	A question or field type within a form. Available types: Text, Radio, Dropdown, Checkboxes, Range, Ranking, File Upload, Date, Date and Time, Date Range, Static Text, Inventory Preferences, Social Link, Signature. Also known as: field type, question type
Furniture	The Inventory subsection for managing furnishings and equipment within rooms.
Form Status	The current state of a form template. Possible values: In Progress: Form being created or edited Published: Form active and available to users Archived: Form no longer in use but retained in system

G

Term	Definition
Guest Invitation	A request to register a visitor for access to housing facilities. Also known as: visitor invitation
Guest Status	The current state of a guest invitation. Possible values: Invited: Guest invitation sent but not yet checked in Checked-In: Guest currently on premises Checked-Out: Guest visit completed

H

Term	Definition
Hard Rules	Must-match criteria in rulesets (e.g., gender must match). See also: Soft Rules, Ruleset

I

Term	Definition
Import	The process of bringing data into Housing.Cloud from external systems (e.g., SIS data, bulk student uploads). See also: Export, Integration Log, Manual Import
Interaction	A logged communication or encounter between staff and a resident, typically used by RAs for room checks, counseling sessions, or incident documentation. Also known as: staff note, RA log
Integration Log	A detailed record of data synchronization between Housing.Cloud and external systems (SIS, payment gateways, etc.). Also known as: sync log
Integrations	The Setup section for configuring connections to external systems like SIS (Banner, Colleague, Workday), payment gateways (Stripe, Touchnet), and SSO providers.
Integration Log Status	The current state of a sync job. Possible values: Queued: Sync job scheduled but not started Running: Sync currently in progress Complete: Sync finished successfully Stalled: Sync encountered errors or stopped
Inventory	The admin section for managing housing units, rooms, and bed spaces.
Inventory Tags	Tags applied to rooms or beds (e.g., "Accessible", "Quiet Floor"). See also: Profile Tags, Application Tags, Tag

K

Term	Definition
Key Management	The Inventory subsection for tracking door keys and mailbox keys (issuance, returns, replacements, lost key billing). See also: Door Key

L

Term	Definition
Lottery	A fair assignment system that distributes room selection time slots to applicants in groups (buckets) rather than all at once. Also known as: lottery system See also: Self-Assignment

M

Term	Definition
Manual Assignment	A process where staff assigns rooms to specific students. Also known as: staff assignment See also: Auto-Assignment, Self-Assignment
Manual Import	A feature in Integrations that allows admins to manually upload CSV files to import data into Housing.Cloud. See also: Import, Integrations
Matching Group	A self-formed group of applicants who want to be assigned as roommates, used during the application and assignment process. Also known as: roommate group Note: This is different from Moving Group, which is for move-in logistics.
Maintenance Request	A task submitted by residents or staff to report facility issues requiring repair or attention. Also known as: work order, service request See also: Task Category
Meal Plan	A dining option or package that residents can select or be assigned as part of their housing. Also known as: dining plan
Meal Plan Assignments	The Setup section for viewing and managing which meal plans have been assigned to residents.
Messages	Communications or announcements displayed to users in the portal, often shown as an accordion on the Dashboard.
Moving Group	An administrative time slot for coordinating move-in or move-out logistics. Also known as: move slot, time window Note: This is different from Matching Group, which is for roommate preferences.

N

Term	Definition
Non-Resident Cycle	An application-only cycle without room assignments (e.g., for waitlists or interest forms). See also: Resident Cycle, Cycle
Note	A text comment with optional attachments added to profiles, applications, tasks, inventory, or animals for documentation and communication. Notes can be marked as Sensitive, Admin Only, or Escalated. See also: Attachments, Interaction
Notification	An automated or manual alert sent to users about system events or updates. Also known as: alert

O

Term	Definition
Occupancy	The current usage of beds/rooms compared to total capacity; can be viewed as percentages or counts in occupancy graphs.

P

Term	Definition
Packages	The admin section for tracking and managing package deliveries for residents. Also known as: mail
Permissions	Access controls that determine what actions users can perform in Housing.Cloud based on their assigned role. See also: Roles
Payment	A transaction made to satisfy a fee, charge, or balance. Also known as: transaction
Payment Status	The current state of a payment transaction. Possible values: Pending: Payment processing or awaiting confirmation Success: Payment completed successfully Failed: Payment did not complete Confirmation Pending: Awaiting payment gateway confirmation Refund Success: Refund processed successfully Refund Failed: Refund could not be processed
Private Tags	Tags only visible to staff for administrative purposes. See also: Public Tags, Tag
Profile	User account information and settings. Also known as: account
Profile Tags	Permanent characteristics assigned to a student's profile (e.g., "Honors Student", "Athlete"). See also: Application Tags, Tag
Public Tags	Tags visible to students for roommate matching. See also: Private Tags, Tag

Q

Term	Definition
Quick Search	A keyboard shortcut (Cmd+K or Ctrl+K) that opens a search dialog for quickly navigating to sections, students, rooms, or tasks.

R

Term	Definition
Recruitment	The admin section for managing staff hiring, job postings, and applications. Also known as: hiring, HR
Refund	Money returned to a user after a payment reversal or cancellation. Also known as: reimbursement
Reports	The admin section for generating and viewing data analytics and reports. Also known as: analytics
Residence Start/End Dates	The contractual period when students are authorized to occupy housing (when they actually live there), as distinct from phase dates which control activity windows.
Request	A submission from a resident asking for assistance, typically categorized by type (e.g., Maintenance, Lockout). Also called the "Requests" or "Contact" section in the resident portal. Also known as: ticket, service request
Residency	The status or assignment of a resident to a specific housing unit.
Resident Portal	The student-facing interface where residents access their housing information, submit requests, and manage their account.
Roles	Permission groups that define what users can access and do in Housing.Cloud. Common roles include Super Admin, Application Manager, Operations Staff, Finance Manager, and RA/Student Staff. See also: Permissions
Rollover	The process of moving residents from one cycle to the next (e.g., continuing students from Fall to Spring).
Residency Status	The current state of a resident's housing assignment. Possible values: Current: Actively living in assigned housing Assigned: Housing assigned but not yet occupied Incoming: Scheduled to move in Transferred: Moved to different housing Canceled: Assignment cancelled Early Termination: Ended residency before planned date Move-In Scheduled: Check-in date confirmed Move-Out Scheduled: Check-out date confirmed Moved Out: No longer occupying housing Overstay: Occupying past scheduled move-out
Resident	A person currently occupying housing. Also known as: student, occupant
Resident Cycle	A full housing cycle with room assignments and move-in capability. See also: Non-Resident Cycle, Cycle
Residents	The admin section for managing people currently living in housing.
Room	A physical living space within a building containing one or more beds. See also: Inventory Hierarchy
Room Parts	The Inventory subsection for cataloging components of rooms (walls, doors, fixtures) used in room condition reports.
Room Assignment	The process or result of placing a resident into a specific room and bed. Also known as: housing assignment
Room Condition Report	A documented assessment of a room's physical state, typically completed at check-in and check-out. Also known as: RCR, inspection report
Room Swap	A request or process to exchange housing assignments with another resident. Also known as: room change, room exchange
Room Type	The classification of a room based on occupancy (e.g., Single, Double, Triple, Suite).
Roommate	Another resident sharing the same bedroom space (same room). Note: This is different from Suitemate, who shares common areas but has a separate bedroom.
Roommate Finder	A tool that allows applicants to search for and connect with potential roommates based on preferences. Also known as: matching tool
Rooms	The Inventory subsection for managing individual room units and their properties.
Ruleset	A set of matching criteria (hard or soft rules) used to assign or match residents based on preferences and requirements. Also known as: matching rules See also: Hard Rules, Soft Rules, Ruleset Editor
Ruleset Editor	The Setup section and tool for creating and managing rulesets for roommate and room matching.

S

Term	Definition
Self-Assignment	A process where students select their own rooms and beds during designated time slots rather than receiving staff assignments. Also known as: self-selection, room selection See also: Lottery, Manual Assignment, Auto-Assignment
Semester	An academic term, typically Fall or Spring, used to organize housing cycles. Also known as: term
Setup	The admin section for system configuration and administrative settings. Also known as: configuration, admin settings
SIS	Student Information System - the institution's external database (e.g., Banner, Colleague, Workday, PeopleSoft) that integrates with Housing.Cloud for student data synchronization. See also: SIS ID, External Term Code, Integrations
Student Staff	The admin section for managing Resident Assistants (RAs) and other student employees. Also known as: RAs, resident assistants
Suites	The Inventory subsection for managing suite configurations and settings.
Sidebar	The main navigation menu panel (typically on the left side) for accessing different admin sections. Also known as: navigation menu
Signable	A document that requires electronic signature (e.g., lease agreement, housing contract). See also: Signature, Document Templates
Signature	An electronic acknowledgment or agreement on a document. Also known as: e-signature
Soft Rules	Preferred criteria in rulesets (e.g., similar sleep schedules). See also: Hard Rules, Ruleset
SIS ID	Student Information System identifier that links a Housing.Cloud profile to the institution's external student database. Also known as: student ID, external ID
Suite	A group of rooms sharing common areas or facilities within a building.
Suitemate	Another resident sharing the same suite but in a different bedroom (shares common areas but not bedroom space). Note: This is different from Roommate, who shares the same bedroom.

T

Term	Definition
Tag	A label used to categorize students, rooms, or applications for eligibility, filtering, or matching purposes. Tags can be profile-level (permanent), application-level (cycle-specific), public (student-visible), or private (staff-only). Also known as: label, category See also: Profile Tags, Application Tags, Inventory Tags, Public Tags, Private Tags
Tag Category	A grouping for related tags (e.g., "Class Year", "Sleep Schedule"). Categories can be set as Exclusive (only one tag from category allowed per student).
Tag Visibility	Determines whether a tag is Public (visible to students) or Private (staff-only).
Task Category	A classification for tasks such as Maintenance, Conduct, or custom categories for organizing work. Also known as: task type
Task Management	The Setup section for configuring task categories, priorities, and workflows.
Task Priority	The urgency level of a task. Possible values: Low: Non-urgent tasks Medium: Standard priority High: Important, time-sensitive tasks Urgent: Requires immediate attention
Task Status	The current state of a task or request. Possible values: Draft: Task created but not opened Open: Task active and awaiting action In Progress: Task actively being worked on Need More Info: Additional information required Closed: Task completed Cancelled: Task no longer needed
Tasks	The admin section for managing checklists, work orders, and action items. Also known as: work orders
Template	A pre-designed form, document, or email layout used for consistent communications.
Transaction	A financial exchange or payment record in the system. Also known as: payment record

V

Term	Definition
Visitors	The admin section for managing guest access and visitor tracking. Also known as: guests See also: Guest Invitation, Guest Status

W

Term	Definition
Workflow	The admin section for managing application review processes, approvals, and automated assignment sequences.

Common Acronyms

Acronym	Full Term
ADA	Americans with Disabilities Act (relevant for accessible housing)
ESA	Emotional Support Animal
RA	Resident Assistant (student staff member)
RCR	Room Condition Report
SIS	Student Information System (e.g., Banner, Colleague, Workday, PeopleSoft)

This glossary is regularly updated as Housing.Cloud evolves. If you encounter terminology not listed here, please contact support.