Can a university (dormitory) legally not accept personal checks, only certified checks or money orders?

I need to secure a space in a dorm (in a university) for the upcoming academic year. I wrote them a check for $400 for the security deposit, but they told me that they don't accept personal checks. They only accept certified checks or money orders.

Is this legal? I know they want confirmation that I have enough funds, but to the best of my knowledge, a personal check is legal tender, and they have no right to refuse to accept a personal check.

Certainly, people pay with personal checks for purchases more than $400 -- sometimes even for home purchases/mortgages!

I had to pay my rent at the last place I lived with money orders for the entire time I lived there. The fact is, a personal check isn't always legal tender. It's a promise that the funds are in the account and that you are the person you say you are. Unfortunately, too many people abuse the checking system and companies (universities are certainly companies) need to protect themselves.

The Post Office charges less for money orders than most banks, I've noticed. Just withdraw the $400 and go there. Have the money order made out to the university and send it off. That way it will be taken care of and you'll know that you have housing and they'll know that it's paid for.

Yes. The only truly legal tender is that that says "Legal Tender" and is issued by the government. Look on your paper money, it says that the bill is good for all debts, public and private. All other forms of payment, checks, credit cards, anything, is not legally binding (this includes coins). As such, the acceptance of any payment other than paper money, is at the discretion of the person or entity accepting the payment.

Sorry, checks are not legal tender.

Any business can turn down a check. There is no law saying that they have to accept checks.

One thing though, their check policy needs to be consistent. They cannot accept checks from one group of people and then decline another group. An example would be racially deciding who can write a check and who cannot. This would be illegal. If they want to universally not accept checks then that is ok though.

"Legal tender" is what a government prints. They don't print your checks, your bank does. Businesses can choose if they wish to accept personal checks or not, and what restrictions they can put on them or not, since it's not actual money, but rather a voucher you and your bank make to redeem for that legal tender.

Yes it is legal.

Universities are a business just like any other. Unfortunately, they too have been burned by people who have written bad checks and thus the policy. It only takes a few bad apples to ruin it for the honest people.

Sorry...

Of course it's legal.

And a check isn't tender. It's a negotiable instrument.

Anyway, it's no problem. Go to your bank and use the $400 in your account to get a money order or a certified check.

Of course it's legal. They are free to set their own requirements. I'm presuming they don't want to deal with the possibility of bad checks.

absolutely,they can demand cash only if they want.