If you are going to live in Germany for a long enough time and you have the means, then it makes sense to rent an apartment or a room. You can find them in ads on the Internet. In universities, you can often see announcements that a student is looking for a companion / companion in order to rent an apartment on shares (each in a room will cost less). Here is the main vocabulary:
- eine Wohnung mieten- to rent an apartment
- die Einzimmerwohnung- studio apartment
- die Zweizimmerwohnung- two-roomed flat
- die Dreizimmerwohnung- three bedroom apartment
- ein Zimmer mie Hen- rent the room
- die Anzeige- announcement
- der Vermieter/die Vermieterin- the one / the one who rents the apartment
- der Wirt/die Wirtin- host/hostess
- der Mietherr- owner (in relation to the tenant)
- der Mieter/die Mieterin - tenant, tenant / tenant, tenant
- die Miete- rent
- hoch- high
- niedrig ["ni:triç] - short
- Wie hoch ist die Miete? - What is the fee for the apartment/room?
- pro Monat- per month
- monatlich- monthly
- fur 3 Monate- for three months
- kalt- no heating surcharge
- warm- with heating supplement
- der Nachbar/die Nachbarin- neighbor / neighbor
- laut- noisy
- (zu) laut sein- be (too) noisy
- ruhig- quiet
- nett- pleasant, cute
Word der Nachbar pronounced with the stress on the first syllable and "inflected in the weak declension (see "Weak declension of nouns").
When describing an apartment and its location, you may need the following words:
- liegen- be located
- sich befinden- be
- gemutlich - cosy
- bequem- convenient/convenient
- ruhig- quiet / quiet
- preiswert- at a fair price
In Germany, residents of the same house (and not just neighbors in the stairwell) greet each other when they meet at the entrance or on the stairs.
A little about apartment amenities:
- der Strom/die Elektrizität - current/electricity
- der Elektroherd/der Gasherd - electric/gas stove
- kaltes/warmes Wasser- cold/hot water
- die Zentralheizung- central heating
- das gas- gas
In Germany, as a rule, electric stoves. Electricity is expensive, and everything cooks rather slowly on the stove, and therefore, in order not to turn on the stove every time, many people use electric kettles and egg cookers. Coffee is brewed in a large coffee maker (die Kaffeemaschine).
In some large houses of the GDR-building (for example, in the eastern part of Berlin) there is also a garbage chute - der Müllschlucker (from der Müll - garbage+ schlucken- to swallow). This is not surprising for us, but Germans from West Germany (and from small towns in general) can say that they have nothing of the sort. People who live in small houses take out the garbage from the bucket (der Mülleimer) in bags into street containers or trash cans (der Müllcontainer; pl. die Müllcontainer). This simple action is now associated with a special word - "die Mülltrennung", "garbage separation". That is, food waste is supposed to be thrown into one container, tin cans into another, and so on. Some people are extremely pleased with this procedure, and some are burdened by it and throw everything together at random. Different parties can take shape even in the same family - for example, the wife is for "Mülltrennung", but the husband does not care. It even happens the other way around: the husband diligently puts everything in different packages, and the wife strives to throw everything away together. Perhaps I would not have touched on the topic of garbage, if not for its popularity in German textbooks for foreigners. Ecology!
Anzeige-ads
rent an apartment - Wohnung mieten
hand over - vermieten
You have learned the topic "my apartment", and now let's try to put it into practice.
For example, you can search for an apartment on these sites
immowelt.de
DIALOGUE
6 Ja, das past mir.
You may need to study
Let's look at an example of material from the famous Austrian school Hueber how three different families are looking for housing and we will try to find an advertisement in the newspaper that is suitable for them.
You can write your answers in the comments.
TASK1 Try to write what kind of apartment you are looking for.
TASK 2
Eine schöne Wohnung \\beautiful apartment
1 -Doch, doch ich sage Ihnen, die Wohnung ist sehr schön und groß: vier Zimmer, Küche und Bad. \\... four rooms, kitchen and bathroom
2 -Und ruhig? Ich sie auch wirklich ruhig? \\and quiet?...
3 -Ja, außergewöhnlich ruhig. Keine Kinder, keine Hunde ...\\...unusually quiet
4-Gut! Wann können Sie mir die Wohnung zeigen? \\when can you show me this apartment?
5 Past Ihnen morgen um halb elf? \\is it suitable for you...
6 Ja, das past mir.
7 -Gefällt Ihnen die Wohnung? \\Do you like the apartment?
8-Oh, ja. Sie gefällt mir sehr gut.
9-Gut! Dann gehen wir in mein Büro und erledigen sofort die Formalitäten.
10 - Warten Siel Ich muß die Wohnung zuerst meinem Mann zeigen.
11 - Ah so? Sie sind verheiratet?
12 Sagen Sie, haben Sie auch Kinder?
13 -Ja, sieben kleine Kinder. Aber wissen Sie, meine Kinder sind sehr musikalisch und hassen Lärm.\\... hate noise
take questions to answers Übung
1. Ihre Wohnung gefällt mir sehr.
2. Zeigen Sie mit bitte Ihren Badezimmer!
3. Alexander gibt dem Hefe ihre Telefonnummer.
4. Er ist verheiratet und hat zwei Kinder.
5. Gefallen Ihnen meine Hunde?
6. Ich hasse Lärm und Hunde.
gefallen/hassen - like/hate
This dialog will tell you what to ask if you want to rent an apartment. What expenses are usually included in the rent and what are not, and how the deposit is paid.
Flat rent. Dialogue
– Guten Tag! Mein Name ist Kovaltschuk. Ich habe Ihre Anzeige vom zweiten Juli in der Zeitung N gelesen. Es geht um die 2-Zimmerwohnung im Berliner Stadtbezirk Fridenau. Ist sie noch frei?
Good afternoon My surname is Kovalchuk. I have read your advertisement of the 2nd of July in the newspaper N. This is a two-room apartment in the Friedenau district of Berlin. Is she still free?
– Guten Tag! Ja, die Wohnung ist noch frei.
Good afternoon Yes, the apartment is still available.
– Ich möchte ein paar Fragen klären.
I would like to clarify a few issues.
- Ja, natural. Bitte, Fragen Sie
Yes, sure. Please ask
– Wie groß ist diese Wohnung?
What are the dimensions of the apartment?
– Das ist eine 2-Zimmerwohnung mit dem Bad und der Küche. Die Wohnfläche beträgt 52 Quadratmeter
This is a two-room apartment with a bathroom and a kitchen. Living area is 52 square meters
– In welchem Zustand sind das Badezimmer und die Küche?
What is the condition of the bathroom and kitchen?
- Badezimmer ist modern gefliest und hat eine Wanne und ein Fenster. Die Küche ist neu und sehr gemütlich
The bathroom is modern tiled and has a bathtub and a window. The kitchen is new and very comfortable.
– Ist eine Kuche eingebaut?
Is the kitchen built in?
– Nein, ohne Einbauküche (ohne EBK). Die Kuche ist leer
No, no built-in kitchen. The kitchen is empty
– Womit ist der Zimmerfußboden ausgestattet?
What is the floor of the rooms?
– Der Fußboden in den Zimmern und dem Flur ist mit Laminat ausgestattet
The floor in the rooms and the corridor is laid with laminate
– Also, die Wohnung befindet sich in Fridenau. Ist es weit von der Stadtmitte?
So, the apartment is in Friedenau. Is it far from city center?
—Nein, nicht weit. Eine Autofahrt bis zur Stadtmitte nimmt circa 15 Minuten, eine U-Bahn-Fahrt – circa eine halbe Stunde.
No, not far. A trip by car to the city center will take you about 15 minutes, by metro - about half an hour.
– Clare. Der Mietpreis ist 520 Euro pro Monat. Kommen hinzu die Nebenkosten?
Clear. The rental price is 520 euros per month. This includes additional expenses?
– Nein, die Nebenkosten sind im Preis nicht eingeschlossen.
No, additional costs are not included in the price.
– East das die Kaltmiete?
Is this the cost of rent without utilities?
- Genau. Das ist der Preis ohne Nebenkosten. Sie sollen zusätzlich für die Müllabfuhr, das Wasser und die Heizung zahlen
- Absolutely right. This is the price without additional costs. In addition, you will need to pay for garbage collection, water and heating.
Was macht das zusammen?
How much will it be in total?
– Der Mietpreis ist 520 Euro, die Nebenkosten sind circa 100 Euro. Alles zusammen macht 620 Euro pro Monat
The rental price is 520 euros, additional costs are approximately 100 euros. All together will amount to 620 euros per month.
- Soviel ich verstehe, die Stromkosten und Telefonkosten soll ich getrennt zahlen.
As far as I understand, I will have to pay for the telephone and electricity separately?
– Das stimmt
Yes it is
– Gut. Soll ich eine Kaution* bezahlen?
Fine. Need to pay a deposit?
– Ja. Das ist drei Mal die Kaltmiete. Das macht zusammen 1560 Euro.
Yes. The amount of three rents without utilities. In general, this is 1560 euros.
– Gut. Kann ich mir die Wohnung ansehen?
Fine. Can I see the apartment?
- Ja, natural. Möchten Sie schon heute kommen?
Yes, sure. Do you want to come today?
– Ja, wenn es moglich ist.
Yes if it is possible
– Ja, das ist moglich. Kommen Sie heute. Um wie viel Uhr?
Yes, it's possible. Come today. At what time?
– Ich kann heute um 19 Uhr kommen. Passt Ihnen?
I can come today at 19 o'clock. Fits?
– Ja. Mir pass. Sagen Sie noch: Wie groß ist Ihre Familie?
Yes. Fits. Also, do you have a big family?
— Drei Personen. Ich, meine Frau und mein Sohn.
There are three of us. Me, my wife and my son.
– Clare. Gut, kommen Sie heute. Dann bis nachher!
Clear. Okay, come today. See you later!
- Bis nachher!
See you later!
* Die Caution is a deposit (usually three months' rent, excluding utilities) that the tenant pays to the landlord after the lease has entered into force. The deposit insures the landlord against possible losses associated with the failure of the tenant to fulfill his obligations under the contract.
The deposit is usually paid in three equal amounts, either in cash or to the landlord's account. This amount must be invested in savings book, and after the expiration of the lease agreement, the landlord returns the deposit with interest.
orHow to rent an apartment in Munich for foreigners with basic German on a trial period.“Tyutchev (Fyodor Ivanovich) was promised an apartment on Ludwigstrasse, and he persistently sought it with energy unusual for him in solving everyday troubles. The said letter contains the lines: “As for the apartment, they promise me to hand it over on the 16th. Otherwise, I will certainly contact the police. However, know that in your absence, if anything was done, it was done badly. On October 16, Tyutchev's apartment was not handed over.
From the book of Arkady Polonsky
Renting an apartment in the capital of Bavaria is not at all easy - demand outstrips supply, so landlords do their best, coming up with more and more sophisticated profiles and unthinkable requirements for applicants. But first things first.
We faced the problem of finding accommodation as soon as we received visas and realized that the time of departure was inexorably approaching. To begin with, we had the task of renting temporary housing for two or three months in order to find a permanent one during this time.
We considered hotels and apartments, and even rooms. Hotels looked at booking. com , but it was the most expensive option, we left it for every fireman. We were looking for temporary apartments-rooms on airbnb. com . There were also difficulties, the main of which were that something was too expensive, or there was nothing suitable for long term on the entered dates, or ... they simply didn’t want to take us.
We wrote and sent a small letter to the applicants with a story about ourselves, in which we said who we are, why we are going to Munich, what kind of education we have and how wonderful we are. After such letters, we received three refusals in a row, and there was less and less time left. Finally desperate, we asked for help from our employer, who, to our happiness, said that he could offer a one-room corporate apartment for three months at a cost of 880 euros (for everything, including utilities and internet).
But having arrived in Munich and settled, and even settled down in our small family nest, we began to search for permanent housing, which was fraught with many interesting discoveries and annoying disappointments.
I want to devote this article to theoretical issues - documents, terms and what to expect from views. Perhaps for many this will be common truth, but for beginners, as we were also upon arrival in Germany, this information may be useful.
First about the terms:
Kaltmiete - "cold" cost of rent, that is, the cost without utility bills;
Nebenkosten - communal payments; must be checked with the landlord Vermieter ), what does he include here, since everyone has different thoughts about this: someone turns on water and heating, someone does not turn on heating; someone takes it here rundfunkbeitrag (Saw this literally a couple of times); sometimes a garage is included here (but more often it is paid separately), etc. Lots of options. But most often the TV, electricity and Internet are paid by the tenant ( Mieter);
Warmiete - "warm" rental price: Kaltmiete + Nebenkosten ;
Caution - pledge. This money is transferred to a special account of the owner of the apartment or a separate special transfer. This amount lies with no one and nothing disturbing. Usually the deposit is three Kaltmiete . You can pay the whole amount at once or in equal parts within three months (see your contract ( Mietvertrag));
Thus, the cost of an apartment usually consists of the following components: warmmiete + electricity (str om )+ garage (tiefgarage (TG) )+ internet.
Documentation.
To rent an apartment, you need to acquire no less set of documents than the one that is served on.
- The letter that you will send in response to the apartments. Think about what you want to write in it beforehand. Usually they are asked to indicate how many people will live, where from, what they do, education, age, family income per year, the presence of children, bad habits, pets, musical instruments, as well as telephones for communication. All this can be flavored with introductory phrases about how you want to rent this wonderful apartment, and finish with the hope of getting a quick answer. We had two letters - in English and German, but then we left only in German.
- your very best photo where you are beautiful, charming and personable. Yes, many landlords ask you to attach a photo.
- Questionnaire. A mandatory document that absolutely everyone requires. The problem is that there is no single general questionnaire, so each agency, the owner of the apartment has its own. The questions are for the most part the same, but the forms are different, and each requires the completion of his own questionnaire. Of course, there are times when you are asked to fill out any form you have. In this case, I always had a questionnaire in which I changed only the address and the start date of the lease.An archive with all questionnaires and other documents can be downloaded. It must be admitted that the site immobilized there was a questionnaire, rather short, but containing all the basic information, but even though it was filled out, other questionnaires had to be filled out daily.
- Working contract. According to the terms of the contract, it could not be sent to other people and shown, therefore, a line was shown “from hand” that the contract was open-ended, as well as a line about wages.
- Confirmation of the last three salaries (statements that are given in the accounting department). Agree that no one will give you three salaries at once, and they require you to provide statements. Here is the vicious circle.
- Reference from a previous landlord and/or reference from an employer. Since our employer was also a landlord, we had a second option - a recommendation from the employer. It was written in it where and by whom my husband works, that the contract is open-ended, and that the employer fully vouches for us. The paper was stamped and signed.
- Mietzahlungsbestätigung - a document stating that you owe nothing to the owner of the apartment, that you have no debts to him. We made such a paper only in the second half of March, because we did not know about its existence earlier.
- Schufa. A document that shows your debt load and solvency. Even if you do not have loans and never had, you still have to do it. Once a year, it can be received free of charge by mail (the certificate is ordered on the website), and it can also be ordered on special websites for 25 euros (site 1 and site 2).The funny thing is that even if you do not have a single debt, then no one will give you 100% reliability anyway, the numbers will range from 94% to 99%.
- Photocopy of the passport.
- Photocopy of visa ( blue card).
It is convenient when all these documents are in in electronic format, so as not to print out a pile of documents every time, thereby killing entire groves of innocent trees, but send them by e-mail. So much more convenient and faster.
To understand the features of the German rent, I advise you to familiarize yourself with the official document, which spells out all the obligations and rights of the renter and renter: Mietverhältnisse über Wohnraum (§§ 549 - 577a). After reading it, even diagonally, you begin to understand that socialism in Germany does not respect the right of private property at all and turns to those who are not able to simply think about their future and fulfill at least one clause of the contract: pay rent on time (especially characteristic and unpunished characters - mietnomade , people who systematically do not pay rent and move from one apartment to another). Therefore, landlords try to insure themselves, to protect themselves from the troubles associated with the fact that the defaulter cannot be evicted, they will have to go to court, prove their rights (to their own apartment) and the wrongfulness of the renter. Legal costs are also borne by the dealer. That is why everyone will ask you about your income and count your money (which is completely unacceptable for a Russian person, since it is not customary for us to “shine” with our income). Many landlords complain about these rules but can't do anything about it.
It may also be useful to know in advance at least with a rental agreement
Sites.
There are a lot of sites for finding apartments. The main one is https://www.immobilienscout24.de/. We also looked at apartments on:
http://www.immowelt.de/;
http://www. wg-gesucht. de/;
http://www. olympiadorf. de/schwarzes-brett - here we posted our search ad.
You can try to find something even at https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/stadt/muenchen/.
We also wrote ads and pasted them on the front doors, in stores on special notice boards - but no one ever called us.
Well, now to the search.
I have very little experience in renting housing - my husband and I rented housing only once in Moscow, where we found an apartment on the first day, fully furnished, with all amenities, close to the metro, transport, free parking and surrounded by shops for 35,000, including utilities (pre-crisis times). And this is in a city whose population has exceeded 15 million. Of course, we read that it is very difficult to rent an apartment in Munich, whose population, according to official data, does not even reach 1.5 million, but we did not think that it was so.
We began to actively search from mid-November, but we were able to find an apartment only at the end of March and conclude an agreement from April 1, 2016. What were our requirements? Close to subway, close to shops, kaltmiete up to 900, warmmiete up to 1200. We were not ready to pay more morally or financially.
If we turn to my own statistics, the data will be as follows: by the beginning of January, we looked at 12 apartments; for January 15; for February 13; for March (one week fell out due to the arrival of guests) 11. Total 51 apartments, of which there were only 6 positive responses: we rejected two of them ourselves (No. 15 and No. 41) for the following reasons: we did not like the areas, and also the apartments themselves - one was too small, the other too old; in two we were rejected after the second interview (#12 and #44); in one we passed only the first meeting, we did not reach the second (No. 16), and finally, we got No. 48.
Considering that I responded to apartments every day, an average of 10 offers, then per month, even if we take 6 days a week, it turned out that I responded to 240 ads. But, as can be seen from the visits, there were not so many invitations. Often standard letters came in which it was written that the apartment had already been rented out to someone else, or that the influx of applicants was so large that no more applications would be accepted. I readily believe in this, because 40-50 people came to the views, and some dealers themselves said that they had received more than 400 applications, and that they were already confused in people and forced to compile huge pivot tables. Therefore, be prepared for the fact that your letters will remain unanswered.
It is not surprising that countless scammers have bred on such fertile soil.
The first - those whose ads look perfect - gorgeous professional photos, stylish environment, very low price. This should alert you: value for money. Such ads do not stay on the site for a long time, they are removed.
I would single out the second category as follows: imagine that you look at apartments every day, and maybe several times a day. A new one appears, you respond to it, and after a few hours you receive a message that the apartment has already been rented out. The silent question "How?!" is heard in your head. I assume that these are also fictitious apartments, perhaps they are gaining a base ... I am not a big expert in such things, but the question of how it is possible to rent an apartment a few hours after it appears on the site still worries me.
The third category is when they answer you, they say that they are glad to show you the apartment, but you need to register on the company’s website in order to be in their database, and that the owner of the apartment will choose from there, and then it turns out that the bill can be paid, and free does nothing.
"My name is XXX and I"ve just read your e-mail regarding my apartment located in XXX . It has 2 rooms: 1 bedroom, 1 living room, 1 kitchen, 1 bath and 1 balcony (a total of 59 m² living space). I "m a single mother from Malmö, Sweden, unfortunately my husband died 4 years ago and since then I always lived with my daughter in Sweden. The apartment has been occupied only by a lady tenant and her son for the last 2 years. Her job The contract has expired and she moved out in October this year.
The apartment it "s in great condition, complete furnished, near the public transportation, schools, shops, gym, restaurants and other facilities. I have no problems if you have any pets as long as you clean up after them. The apartment comes with own parking space for one car. I am not interested to make a lot of money from the rent as I am interested to find a reliable tenant who will take good care of the apartment You can use my furniture or you can bring your own if you prefer.If you decide to bring yours, I can store my furniture in the large basement cellar.Also very important, the following utilities: Water, Heating, Internet and Digital TV The Electricity has to be paid separately.The caution deposit is 1.300 Euro and you will get it back when you will move out (I will need a 30 days notice).
I would like to know how many persons you intend to share the flat with and for how long. Any other details about yourself will be appreciated.
I guess this is it for now, if you need more pictures or any other info please feel free to e-mail me!”
Thanks for taking the time to look at my apartment. My name is
XXX , i have inherited this apartment from my aunt who unfortunately passed away last year and as i am not looking to move to Germany, as i was born and raised in England and i have a good job and my family here.The apartment comes with 1 parking spot, a storage unit where you can deposit my furniture (if you don't like it and you want to use your furniture), there is also a linen closet, and most importantly, a new washer and drier.Pets allowed.
I really want to find a good and responsible tenant for it and i am looking to rent it for as long as possible, and I hope that you can send me some personal information about yourself. The rent of the apartment for 1 month is EURO 730 all bills included.
If you are really interested in rent my apartment please reply back and i will give you more details.”
So be careful and careful. Similar letters came to us quite often, sometimes the same word for word, but with different names. After receiving such a letter, a letter usually arrives from the site, which warns of fraudulent activities.
I do not deny that there are also individual viewings, with very nice brokers or hosts; some arrange an entire interview, so be prepared for that as well. It is an interview - you will sit at the table, opposite each other, you will be asked questions, and write down the answers in a book or table.
It should also be noted that it is good when there are two of you - one goes to work, and the second is looking for an apartment, since not only the searches and responses themselves take a lot of time, but also the road, and the time is not always assigned in accordance with your capabilities - viewing can be at 8 am, and in the afternoon, and in the evening, once was even at 21-30. Agree that it is impossible to constantly take time off from work to go see the apartment. What kind of employer will like an employee who is always absent ... It also does not mean at all that invitations will be sent in advance - once the invitation came at 2 o'clock in the evening on the evening of the same day. I didn’t see it, I didn’t check the mail - your problems, since there are many who want it, they will find the tenant anyway.
It is precisely the fact that there are many people who want to rent, and housing is clearly in short supply (in Munich you will not see active construction around the city, as around Moscow and St. - there is not enough housing, otherwise there would not be such a collapse with rent), allows those who place ads not to care about their quality: some of the ads may be without photos in principle (anyway, someone will respond), somewhere they may be dark, fuzzy or upside down, and some ads have only one photo - an advertisement for a kitchen from Ikea . And here is a very exotic version:
Or how do you like an ad with a photo from another apartment?
Here we come to the most interesting thing - to what kind of apartments they offer, what they pay attention to and what requirements they impose. But more on that in (which will be full of photos).
The housing market in Germany last years a difficult situation has arisen. As one of the most developed European countries, foreigners flock here from all over the world and for a variety of reasons. Migration also occurs within the country: people, especially young people, do their best to leave small towns and villages and move to regional centers or simply large economically developed cities. In such cities, there are many more vacancies, hobby groups, opportunities for personal and professional growth. As a result, in especially attractive cities, the demand for housing begins to greatly exceed supply. One of these cities is Munich, and using its example, we will tell you what to consider when looking for housing in order for this very search to succeed in conditions of absolute hopelessness.
Where can I find an apartment for rent in Germany?
An article on this subject has already been written on Studiren, which does not lose its relevance today. It talks about what real estate search sites are, as well as how to use them.
In addition, housing can be searched on Facebook in German thematic groups. For example, here are just some of them (for finding housing in Munich):
There are also city groups and VKontakte. Many of them have threads on finding housing, where "ours" in Germany offer their housing to "our" people who are moving. Despite the seeming absurdity, you can find really good offers there, and I do not recommend them to disdain. For example, here is what the Munich bands look like:
In addition to housing for rent by the month, there is also a large offer of apartments for rent by the day. An ideal option for selecting such apartments is airbnb. For almost the same price as monthly rent, you can rent a fully furnished apartment in a good area with included utilities and the Internet (and by clicking on the link you will also receive additional discount 23 euros for the first order).
Problems related to finding housing in Germany
Imagine the situation: you find an ad on the Internet offering well-maintained, moderately expensive housing near the third city ring. Fabulous conditions! You make sure that the ad is not a hoax and that it is still active, and even make an appointment with the landlord. 10 minutes before the appointed time, you arrive at the place and prepare to start the search for “the same house and the same apartment”, having tuned in advance that this may not be easy. But do not worry: most likely, the apartment will be visible from afar, at best - by the open door to the entrance, at worst - by the train of applicants, stretching from the front door itself through the entire entrance and flights of stairs to the street and along it a little more. This is how the search for an apartment looks like in Hamburg, Munich and in a number of especially popular German cities.
Huge demand is a big problem, but, alas, not the only one. Who, if not a student, will tell you about the others?
Passbook size
In a city like Munich, it makes no sense for you to start looking for an apartment using “standard” methods if you don’t have 5,000 euros in your account. I can imagine how some readers' eyebrows crept up in bewilderment at these words, so I will immediately reassure you: the amount mentioned is deliberately somewhat overstated, but in the worst case scenario, you will need to focus on it.
When looking for housing, you will have the following items of expenditure:
- Payment for brokerage services. A broker in Germany is a person who is paid to treat you like ... treat you like yourself, in general. For a haughty look, impudent questions and general neglect, you will need to pay the broker nothing less than 2.38 from the “cold” rent of an apartment (total rent minus utilities, excluding electricity). In the case of Munich, where the average rental housing is 600-700 euros / month, when you move in, you will need to part with 1,500 euros in one fell swoop.
UPD. Since July 2015, brokerage services have outweighed the tenant, so for now this expense column can be deleted. For a long time or not - it will be seen. In any case, the cost of brokerage services will be high proportion The probability is included in the rental price, so we can expect an additional increase in the rental price in the near future. - This is followed by a deposit, which usually amounts to 3 "cold" monthly rent, that is, about 2000 more. In addition, you will need to immediately pay the first month's rent, taking into account utilities and so on, it will be about 800 more euros. In total, for an average apartment in the Bavarian capital in the first month, you will need to pay a little more than 4 thousand euros (4100-4200, according to our calculations). And that's if you're lucky.
- Also note that most apartments in Germany are rented unfurnished. Germans hate second-hand furniture, and since the market exists mostly for them, finding an apartment with furniture is quite difficult. Therefore, to the above amount, you can add about two thousand euros for home improvement, which you will spend in the next 3-4 months, depending on your appetites and tastes. 2 thousand is if Ikea and buying used furniture in good condition on special sites.
tricky questions
The Germans are not interested in settling you. German law protects tenants very strongly, so for many it is easier not to settle anyone than to settle an insolvent comrade. The competition for each apartment at the time of this writing is several hundred people, so even if you have millions of euros in your account, you will be checked according to the following parameters:
Work and financial viability
Alas and ah students. Hearing the question “Where, for what money and how long do you work?”, You can safely go to the exit. Some landlords are willing to consider a parental financial guarantee, however, if it is issued in Germany. Documents from "third" countries will not convince anyone. However, it will be difficult even if you are on probation. In this case, it is good to have a business card of the boss with you, who is ready to give you a personal recommendation. If your monthly income is much less than three apartment rentals, you will also be moved up in the ranking by several places.
Credit history
Even if, according to the previous paragraph, the landlord liked you, with a bad credit history You won't get an apartment. In general, it is logical: even with earnings of 3-4 thousand euros / month, you can be the last goat with several convictions for non-payment of financial obligations.
Number of people who will live in the apartment
It will be several times more difficult for an unfortunate applicant to find an apartment if he is going to live not alone. The fact is that in Germany, landlords do not consider “If a young man rents an apartment alone, he will take someone without getting into it and arrange noisy parties. It’s better to rent it to a married couple, it’s calmer”, and “If a young man rents an apartment alone, he wears it out half as much as if two or more people rent an apartment.” The advice that I received from a broker when I was looking for housing was as follows: even if you need an apartment for two, you must say that one, in order to get an apartment. After you settle down and give the landlord money, it will be much easier to persuade a second person.
The ideal candidate for a German landlord looks like this: you work for several years for a large and well-known company that pays rent for you. At the same time, you will not particularly live in an apartment due to frequent business trips. Also, the establishment of a family and children is not included in the plans for this life, but it is included to rent an apartment for at least 10 years, preferably paying for repairs and reviewing the cost of rent every year. As a nice bonus - SCHUFA, pure and innocent, like a girl's tear dropped into an alpine lake.
Fraud
As elsewhere, in Germany there is a special stratum of people who profit from other people's misfortunes in a dishonest way. Various kinds of scammers can get in your way, so be prepared. The scam is quite simple:
An ad is placed on a real estate website with an ideal apartment in many respects, offered for reasonable (it used to be cheaper than reasonable, but the scammers realized that they were on fire and corrected themselves) money.
Upon contact, they answer you in English or bad German text with content like "I'm sorry, I'm not in the country now, you send me money to my account, and I'll send you the keys by mail / through a friend." As you might guess, no keys come by mail: having received the money, the scammer simply disappears.
What to do?
A general recommendation that can be given to those looking for: search in every possible way, tell all your friends that you are looking for housing, and also be as punctual, polite and friendly as possible when viewing housing. Try to compliment the broker or landlord about his property. Talk to him on common topics do something to be remembered.
After the show, do not wait for the landlord to call you: call yourself, show your interest. Even housing issue you do not burn, pretend that you need it urgently, even if it is not so. Actually, you do not have to tell everything as it is. In those questions that cannot be verified, embellish a little. Remember that you are communicating with living people who are endowed with emotions.
If you see that your landlord is acting insecure with an overall positive outlook, find out what confuses him. Bring reviews about you from work / university / previous place of residence. Be creative :)
Finally, I will tell you the story of how I was looking for housing. Initially, taking it as a premise that I was not going to pay brokerage fees (and I had to get housing quickly - within a month and a half), I, full of fears and hopes, opened (and immediately closed) most of the sites - only WG was offered, fake and very expensive (> 1000 euros/month) options. For a while I went through the options (I write this, I don’t write that), but after a week I realized that I was in the wrong position to be harmful, and began to send out a long template letter to everyone in a row, in which I only changed my first / last name tenant. I got about 10% of these letters answered. As you could see from the responses, people were simply too lazy to read a lot of letters, so in a few iterations my letter was reduced to a quarter of the original size and consisted, in fact, of questions (when is the term for visiting? when can I check in? how long is the apartment for rent?) , personal data ( wage, age, gender, habits, presence of pets, etc.), as well as greetings / farewells. Two out of three responded to such a letter. A week later, I started calling those landlords who indicated their number on the site. By that time, I had almost completely switched to Facebook and immobilienscout24. On Facebook, housing was usually rented to students or for incredible money, so I never found anything. But there were a lot of offers from the scout.
Then the terms began. I had 2-3 reviews per day: one in the morning before work and 1-2 more after. Crowds of people, a smart smile, heart-to-heart dialogues with a broker, exercises in wit: all this in order to get into the “final round” in every third sentence and get rejected for some reason. One of the reasons: I was looking for an apartment for two, and if I had continued to tell the truth, I would have written this article from the shop of the main station. Thanks to the broker who shared with me the skill of lying to the rescue. Second reason: late check-in. Answering the landlord's question "When can you check in?" something like “In three weeks, while housing is still available,” I immediately put an end to myself in his eyes.
As in most of these stories, the apartment was found by a miraculous coincidence, when involuntarily everything was done right. After three weeks of searching, I had two housing offers: one outside the city in a private apartment for several families, the other in the center, across the street from the metro, but twice as small in size (at the same time, for almost the same cost). I decided that I would settle near the metro, but just in case, I decided to call outside the city without waiting for a call from the landlord. In a surprised voice, the landlord asked me if I really wanted to rent his apartment, and, having received an affirmative answer, said that I could come for the keys on Monday. Feeling solid ground under my feet, I called the landlords near the metro, ready to fall into a sweet state when the landlord does not choose you, but you choose him. Imagine my disappointment when an elderly couple who rented an apartment near the metro gave it to another interested person simply because “she told us that she had nowhere to live. You have somewhere to live for another three weeks, right?
What was to be done in such a situation is obvious to everyone:
Hello, herr such and such? Is everything okay with Monday? Let's go at 5:30?
- Gruce Gott. Yes, come on. I will immediately take the contract, we will arrange everything. Bis data.
We wish you good luck in the difficult task of finding accommodation in Germany. Search actively, call uninvited, write to the point, be punctual, dress smartly, be assertive, cunning and try to win over. Remember that you are interested in housing, not the landlord. By the way, perhaps you already had such an experience? What life hacks have you discovered for yourself? Was it easy for you? Share your story in the comments!