Finding accommodation can be tricky in any country you haven’t been to. Especially if it is for the first time you are involved in this process. If you are looking for accommodation in Germany you need to know certain things before you finalize anything.

1. Contract – Independent of any kind of accommodation you decide to choose for yourself, you have to sign a contract. If the person/team is offering you anything without a contract i.e. only on the basis of what the two parties (you and the other one offering the apartment) then do not take that offer. Make sure you have a contract. Once you have this contract, go through it like your life depends upon it. There have been many incidents in my acquaintance circle where students did not read the contract and they not only had to pay a certain amount (for x reasons) but also ended up in a stressful situation. Contracts bind you legally. Therefore, it is good for both the parties to have one and agree upon the mentioned terms & conditions.
2. Security deposit – There is usually always a security deposit – also called caution – involved when you’re booking any type of accommodation for yourself. The deposit can be a total of a month stay or 3 months, depending upon what your landlord/univerisity or the person offering you wants. Whatever it is, it is mentioned in your contract. When you move out, you can adjust this deposit by not paying your stay for the last month (or last 3 months) or pay your stay normally and get your deposit transacted in your bank account.
3. Damage charges – Needless to mention, whatever damage you do to the apartment during the period of your stay you have to pay it. This is also mentioned in your contract. So be careful when you in how you treat your apartment. Keep it like your child or else you will end up paying a hefty amount. You cannot run away from paying this as you have a security deposit with your landlord and the damages can be deducted from them.
4. Types of accommodation – Depending upon the city you’re in, you can different types of accommodation to choose. You can have student dormitories owned by universities or private single-apartments or shared-apartments. You can also choose to stay with a family in a home in a where you will be given a room or may be a certain portion of their house that belongs to you. Based on what suits your needs and the budget, you can choose yourself your stay in Germany. You can also choose if you would like to have a furnished, semi-furnished or non-furnished apartment.
5. Prices of accommodation – How much do you pay for your accommodation varies from city to city and place you are living in. Bigger cities like Munich, Berlin, Frankfurt are expensive to stay compared to towns like Landau, Ludwigshafen, Kaiserslautern etc. Even when it is the same city, if you are in the outskirts you might pay slightly lesser than if you are staying inside the city, closer to the city center or tram station. This website offers you a decent estimation of what your monthly rent would like in different cities of Germany.

Wish you luck with your apartment search.

Muchlove & strength!