What is a fast way to get a cheap apartment in Stockholm, Sweden?

Question

It is generally really hard to get an apartment in Berlin, but there is one service that makes it convenient called “Housing Anywhere”. You can book affordable rooms online. They’re usually an acceptable quality. It’s convenient to book and there are rooms immediately available. The way they keep cost down is that many people tend to live in one apartment. In my current one, there are three beds in one spacious room, for example. It’s perfectly legal and comfortable.

Is there anything like this in Stockholm? I know the official apartment queue has a long wait time. But what about a widely used, easy, fast way to get something cheap to meet your basic needs?

Answer 1

We used Blocket to find an apartment to rent, and it also advertises rooms in shared houses. Prices vary as it covers all sorts of places in a variety of areas - I expect you can find some cheaper options.

It has quite a bad reputation in online reviews, but by the time we used it in September 2022, they had made changes and were working with another organisation, Qasa, to create safer rental conditions. While you still need to be wary of scams, if you sign the lease and pay through Blocket/Qasa then you have some security.

We didn't have any problems and were in our new apartment within a week of contacting the owner. The only caveat is that a lot of owners (or their housing associations) won't consider tenants who don't have a Swedish ID, so if you're new to the country you may have to contact quite a few before you find one.