Studying in Berlin: How to find an apartment quickly

Finding accommodation in Berlin is hard enough even for professionals, so it seems impossible for students to find decent accommodation at an affordable price. But don’t worry, you can do it! So the first tip is: be open to offers and be prepared to make compromises. Even if you would prefer to have your own apartment, you should also look at shared apartments. A room in a shared flat is usually cheaper and can make it easier for you to settle into a new city with great flatmates. That’s why we’d like to introduce you to the advantages of a shared flat and those of your own apartment.

The advantages of a shared flat

The rent is the biggest advantage in a shared flat, as a room often costs less than an entire apartment. In addition, the costs for purchases such as a fridge are shared. This means you can save a few euros in the long term. You get direct access to locals who can show you around the city and show you cool clubs. The company comes free of charge on top. Domestic chores such as cleaning, but also purchases such as cleaning products and internet access are shared. You can easily go on vacation or attend your lecture because there is usually someone at home to either water the plants or accept your Amazon packages. If you forget or lose your keys, you don’t have to pay for an expensive locksmith because you have flatmates. And you’re never alone: whether it’s a DVD evening or a study group – you’ll have people to share your flat with.

The advantages of having your own apartment

The clear advantage of having your own apartment and your own four walls: You alone are the master of the house. If the doorbell rings and you want to play dead, you can do it here. Want to listen to loud music? You can do that. You’d rather clean tomorrow than today? That’s your decision. So you can give free rein to your ideas here: be it the furnishings in the living room or your expectations of tidiness and cleanliness. If you’re the quiet type who likes it quiet and doesn’t like it when other people use your things, then you’ll probably be happier in your own apartment than in a shared flat.

The apartment search

Even if you have found out after the last two paragraphs that you are not a flat-sharing person, remember tip number 1: Be open to everything. This will increase your chances of finding accommodation in Berlin. But that alone is not enough, so tip number 2: Let everyone know that you are looking. Start with your friends and acquaintances, Facebook and on the notice board at university, and continue with search ads on EBay Kleinanzeigen and WG gesucht. The more people know about your search, the more people can help you find accommodation in Berlin.

Switch on automatic alerts

Did you know that many online apartment exchanges send automatic emails as soon as accommodation is advertised that matches your search? The 6 most popular portals are: Immobilienscout24.de, immowelt.de, immonet.de, kalaydo.de, wggesucht.de and Kleinanzeigen.eBay.de. You should set up these alerts so that you don’t miss any offers.

Use Facebook groups

Have you already posted an apartment request for Berlin on your profile and informed all your friends? Great! The next step is now to look for corresponding FB groups. For Berlin, search for “Berlin commission-free”, “Living in Berlin”, “Flat share in Berlin”, “Flat swap” and “Living in Berlin” and so on. FB groups are often used to find apartments and shared apartments privately, which means that many costs are eliminated.

Call instead of writing an e-mail

If you have the opportunity to contact a provider directly by phone, you should do so immediately. Don’t waste time, don’t wait too long for an answer via email, seek direct contact. You’ll be surprised how much faster your search will progress as a result. If you are already in Berlin, put up notices in the districts where you would like to live. Whether at traffic lights, in the supermarket or on the notice boards of various student residences: If you make the effort to actively look for accommodation yourself, you will be rewarded. You will often be contacted directly by people who want to move out and are looking for a new tenant. No long waits, no long queues, no competition.

Preparation is everything

Whether it’s the prepared slips of paper or the registered letter in various groups: If you start your search in good time, you can also find an apartment in Berlin. To speed up the process, you should prepare a folder that you will always have with you when viewing apartments in Berlin. This folder should contain important documents that could be of interest to an estate agent or landlord. Whether it’s a Schufa credit report or a signed parental guarantee – you can use it to convince the first few people of your worth, which will make your search easier.

SMARTments Students

If you are not lucky or are interested in a room in our SMARTments Students House, you should take a look at our homepage. From March 1, we will be opening our David Friedländer Haus at Kaiserin-Augusta-Allee 4 in 10553 Berlin. As student accommodation in Berlin is hard to find, we have already received a lot of inquiries, which we will process as quickly as possible. You should therefore apply immediately if you are interested in one of our apartments. There is a discount store in the immediate vicinity for daily shopping trips and various universities are within walking distance and can be reached by bike in just a few minutes. The Plötzersee lake, for example, is just 11 minutes by bike from the building. Sunny summer days can therefore also be enjoyed in Berlin. You can find everything about the carefree rent (utilities included), the ideal location in the heart of Berlin with a view of the Spree and the community on our website and on our FB page or on Instagram.