Finding a place

This short post will give you an overview of the three prevalent options in Germany as well as give you a few things to consider before you settle down.

The lingo you will need:

• “Kaltmiete” (“cold rent”): this is the rent price without any extras (electricity, water, internet and miscellaneous bills)
• “Warmmiete” (“warm rent”): cold rent + many, but not all of the extras above
• “Nebenkosten” (extras): electricity, water, miscellaneous bills (sometimes internet is included, other times you have to get a contract)
• “Kaution”: security deposit, usually two or three month's rent

“Studentenwohnheime” are usually cheaper than apartments and are mostly located in prime locations, either on campus or near the city centre. As he mentions in his article, you should apply as soon as you know that you are coming to Stuttgart, to ensure that you are not too far down on the waiting list.  “Studentenwohnheime” provide roughly 7,000 places, while there are roughly 28,000 registered students at the University of Stuttgart.

In Germany, most students stay in shared apartments due to the lack of space in Uni accommodation. Shared apartments are known as "Wohngemeinschaften" (WGs) and a quick Google search will lead to you some search engines, the most famous one being “wg-gesucht.de”.

Some students that can afford to live alone find an apartment, but these are usually out of reach for students with a “normal” budget.

Make sure to exhaust all options: Uni notice board, newspaper ads, facebook groups, notice boards around the city (supermarkets included).

Sometimes landlords are reluctant to rent to (foreign) students, so make sure to have proof of finance (bank statement or something of the sort)!

Chris