The Ultimate Guide To Finding Accommodation In Germany For International Students
Yana Immis
This page provides tips & tricks to help you in your accommodation hunt in Germany and to make your experience less expensive and daunting.
When foreigners arrive in Germany, they experience their first shock: what to do before and after moving to a flat and how to find one?!
The degree of the apartment supply and demand depends on the city, hence the drastic difference in the rental fees. Finding housing in busy cities can be very time-consuming, particularly in Munich & Frankfurt as well as the other big cities: Stuttgart, Cologne, Berlin, Hamburg.
This page provides tips & tricks to help you in your accommodation hunt in Germany to make your experience less expensive and daunting. German visa application does not require you to have a secured accommodation option, hence you have plenty of time to have stress-free research.
Accommodation In Germany Options
Germans tend to rent a flat instead of buying one, especially in towns and cities. Houses are mostly common in villages and on the outskirts of smaller towns. The country offers a wide range of the rental opportunities:
Apartment
Unfurnished
Furnished
You can expect to pay on average 500-1000 Euro per month for a 1 - room flat, depending on the location, utilities, and furniture. Ancillary costs (water, gas, heating) range between 8 Euro per square meter in rural areas and small towns to 12 Euro in large cities.
Room in a shared apartment
Unfurnished
Furnished
Dorm
Private Campus Studio
State Student Residence Room
Interim Solutions
Airbnb, Couch Surfing
Hotels, Hostels & Holiday Apartments
A hotel room costs on average about 90 Euro per night. Youth hostels charge 25 Euro per night on average. There are cheaper or free options available with the Couch Surfing experience.
Monthly Cost for a Room In Germany (in €)
Accommodation In Germany Tips & Tricks
When searching for accommodation in Germany on your own, you need a strategy. Here is what you need to do.
Before Arrival
Prepare yourself mentally & start in good time
Costs for Accommodation will be the largest item on your monthly budget and you have to accept this fact.
The majority of students in Germany start studying in September (October) or February (March). Do not end up being one of 15.000 new international students in the city searching for a flat, start the search early enough. Recommended time: 90 days prior to arrival.
You will have trouble finding affordable housing but using the tips listed below, your chances will drastically increase.
Learn to compromise
Aim for long-term and unfurnished flats
Unfurnished means no bed sheets or cutlery, no curtains or kitchen equipment. The majority of German unfurnished flats don’t have anything but the empty walls and the floor, not even a kitchen.
If you consider staying in Germany for a long period of time, consider buying a kitchen, it will definitely pay off. You should not disregard unfurnished flats, because you might miss out on some good opportunities, considering unfurnished flats are prevailing on the market.
Furnished and short-term lets are available but are on average less popular.
Consider options farther away from your university
Due to a reliable transportation system in the cities, it is recommended that you do not limit your search to one particular area, as you might miss out on a great opportunity.
Rents on the outskirts are often much cheaper and it does not take you longer than 25-40 min to commute to your study destination.
Compromise!!! Location OR apartment size: Choose ONE!
Learn the vocabulary and be considerate
| Hausmeister | Janitorial service |
|---|---|
| Kaltmiete | Rent excluding utility costs |
| Kaution | Deposit |
| Mietvertrag | Rented flat |
| Möblierte Wohnungen | Furnished flats |
| Nebenkosten | Additional costs |
| Provision | Commission |
| Warmmiete | Rent including utility costs |
| Wohngemeinschaften (WG) | House and flat shares |
| Zimmer | Room |
| Zwischenmiete | Short-term lets |
Accommodation options do not stay available online for long.
Be fast: inquire, reply and confirm the appointments in a timely manner
Be persistent: ring straight away when you see a new ad if the telephone number is available. When you are writing an email request, make sure to provide your contact details, quick but not long background information and politely ask for a viewing appointment
Be polite: imagine yourself in the position of a landlord
Would you rent out this room/flat to yourself?
Opt for a WG-Zimmer or use the last resort
If you experience trouble finding a flat as a newcomer, a room in a shared flat is an option for you. You can make friends quickly and to save money on the rent.
a. In a WG-Zimmer option, each person in the flat has their own bedroom. The kitchen, guest room, and bathroom are shared
b. The bills for electricity, internet, phone, and other utilities are split equally between all members of the WG
In Germany, the WG option is popular not only with the students but as well with trainees and working professionals.
If you are about to give up, get advice from a real-estate agent.
Attention: commission or service fee may apply.
!Buyer beware! Read advertisements carefully
Due to the scarcity of affordable value-price accommodation options, many frauds thrive in the forums.
Contact your university to help you confirm the option you have found is realistic and trustworthy. Check, check and one more time check with German speakers (friends, relatives, or on forums) if your agreement with the landlord is legitimate. If required, ask advice from the lawyer.
Common Frauds:
Landlord
Make sure to check abbreviations, contact details of a landlord, if you can find this person on social media, it is a safe bet
To be able to register your address in the immigration office, you must provide two documents:
A contract for the flat/room
A written permission from the flat owner for you to rent a flat/room
If the landlord is not able to give you this document, it means this person is trying to sublet apartment illegally or without permission from a landlord, stay far away from this option.
Payment
Never pay a deposit or rent in advance before you have a counter-signed contract
Never pay anything in cash unless you receive an official receipt
In Germany, the majority of deposits and monthly rental payments are done via banking transactions
If any landlord tries to get you to pay a finder fee or commission fee, or they incorporate such a fee into your monthly rent, this is against the law and you should avoid such offers
Buy flights and book short-term accommodation
Pay attention to your visa dates and accommodation booking dates. If you have not found a flat prior to arrival, it is not a problem. The majority of contracts are signed in person after you have arrived in Germany.
Make sure to:
Book short-term accommodation for 1-2 weeks from the arrival date
Schedule as many appointments as possible within this period of time to meet landlords in person
Mind the public holidays, fairs and conferences (i.e. Oktoberfest, ISPO, BAUMA, etc.) with no available hotel rooms in town.
Maybe it makes sense to postpone your arrival?
After Arrival
Prepare for a flat visit
In Germany, when a landlord is deciding upon a new tenant, the first impression plays a big role. That’s why you can consider a flat visit as serious as a job interview: put on relevant attire by general norms and come on time.
It is very difficult to find a flat. But it is as difficult for a landlord to kick out the tenant from the flat, for that reason be prepared to go through a lot of bureaucracy to secure yourself a good place. Landlords in Germany are risk-averse, so make them feel secure while giving you the room/flat.
How can you confirm your reliability to a future landlord? With as many documents as possible.
You are not obliged to submit the documents listed below; it is only up to you. No one has a right to demand these documents from you, but to increase your chances, try to collect at least 75% of these items, print them out and take them with you to the flat viewing in a nicely organized folder.
✔ Employment contract
✔ CV (Curriculum Vitae)
✔ 3 Last salary statements (payslips)
✔ Bank account balance statement
✔ Blocked Bank account confirmation
(Still unsure which blocked account option to choose? Choose Coracle! (The best option for international students in 2020-2024))
✔ SCHUFA check (credit score)
You can order it after you have arrived in Germany with a fee of 30 Euro.
You are also entitled to a more basic SCHUFA report for free
✔ References from your previous landlord
✔ Enrollment Certificate
✔ Matriculation
Practice, practice, practice - during the visits, use your charm and negotiations to the fullest and make sure to bring all possible documents with you, which would guarantee a stable income of you and your parents (if applicable).
Do not get demotivated if you have been searching for a long period of time in vain or if you are one of the thirty visitors and you haven’t secured a place. It will take time.
Accommodation In Germany Useful Links
Top Author Choice:
Dorms:
If you want to study at a German higher education institution, in the majority of the cases you will have to arrange your own accommodation. Exceptions apply. Contact me to find out more.
Long-Term Lets
Short-Term Lets
Hostelworld.com
Other
Facebook Groups
Accommodation in ‘put the city name here’
International Friends of ‘put the city name here’ – Accommodation
International Friends of ‘put the city name here’
‘Put nationality here’ in Germany
Expat Forums
Accommodation In Germany Extra Useful Information
You will find information about Nebenkosten (additional expenses and utilities) in a room/flat ad and/or in a contract:
Mostly it includes heating, water, gas
Some apartments include Internet, phone and other expenses – make sure to consult the landlord)
In Germany, Radio tax (Rundfunk) is mandatory to pay
You will receive a letter after the registration at the local authorities. Do not disregard it and organize payments in a timely manner
Only one person per household must pay the tax
The majority of contracts are for the duration of 6 to 12 months
The cancellation notice period is generally 2 to 3 months before the contract ends
The rental period in 95% of the cases starts from the 1st day of the month
Students are required to pay a security deposit (equal to 1-3 rents) to secure the place
Security deposit is returned within 2-3 months (max. 6 months) after the student leaves the apartment
Deposit is returned in full unless contract rules were violated, or damages were made
In Germany, you may be asked to lower down music in the certain hours and your neighbors have a right to do so (between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. and from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday and all-day Sunday)
Germans separate garbage. You will find different options: plastic, paper, and organic
Many apartment blocks or houses have a washing machine, shareable with other flat owners. It costs 1-2 Euro to use it once
Pets are generally welcome, but you are required to ask for permission in written form
Bicycles, baby strollers & cars have a designated parking area
Cellar space or a garage may be included in your contract, make sure to double check it with your landlord
If you want to do modifications in the flat or to do an outside activity that might inconvenience the neighbors, make sure to first double-check with your landlord and ask permission from the neighbors
You are not allowed to sublet a flat or room without permission from your landlord
Best of luck with your search!
