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8 votes
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What does "separate kitchen" mean in apartments in London?

It means that the kitchen is not in the same room as the open-plan bedroom/living room. If the kitchen was shared, the property would be described as a "room" (or "en-suite room" if there was a ...
Martin Bonner supports Monica's user avatar
7 votes
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Netherlands - Rental agency is forcing me to accept a contract

I am also not a lawyer, not Dutch, and have no Dutch legal experience. Still, I am absolutely sure they have no legal basis to demand payment. Rental agreements which involve contracts are concluded ...
einpoklum's user avatar
  • 2,778
6 votes

Resign Rental Contract Germany

It is correct that the contract binds you to pay for three months, even if you cancel it right now, before moving in. However, typically landlords in Germany are willing to accept a qualified ...
Aganju's user avatar
  • 1,501
6 votes
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Netherlands housing rental - I might be getting scammed, how to avoid that?

It's 99% certainly a scam. The exact same thing happened to me twice when I was in your position, including the passport scan. Guy said he was working in the UK and wanted to rent out his apartment, ...
einpoklum's user avatar
  • 2,778
6 votes

Do real estate agents in Melbourne actively help you find a rental?

Finding an apartment on its own doesn't justify this being an expat question, but since I've done this myself AND know there are some expat issues with doing so, I'll address those. It takes time. ...
Mark Mayo's user avatar
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5 votes
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US citizen looking to visit UK for 1 year

I lived in the UK for 5 years, and when I moved out of the country, I left my EEA partner there. In the end, I was never able to visit him because of this stuff. So I know a thing or two about this. ...
la femme cosmique's user avatar
5 votes

Renting in Germany: how do I get a SCHUFA?

As a prospective tenant, the landlord is expecting you to obtain a credit report, through the German credit bureau, SCHUFA.
Giorgio's user avatar
  • 4,713
5 votes
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Is 500$/month sufficient to live in Olomouc (Czech Republic)?

Question #1: Can you make it on $500? Short answer: It's going to be tight, but yes. Question #2: Can you save a reasonable amount of money? Probably not. Salary after tax Before we start, we need to ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
  • 2,364
5 votes

Apartment viewing Tips?

Let's start with the "bad experiences" part of your question: This might be trivial for some, but: Never ever pay any money before you've physically seen the apartment. There are quite a few rent ...
einpoklum's user avatar
  • 2,778
5 votes

French housing agencies refuse to accept a foreign guarantor

(Partial answer) As mentioned on https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F31267, it is legal for the owner to require a garantor (a caution), notice that it is not mandatory. La ...
audionuma's user avatar
  • 1,204
5 votes
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French housing agencies refuse to accept a foreign guarantor

As promised, I am completing my comment with an answer. As @audionuma mentioned, the housing market in Paris is quite difficult, even for locals. Indeed, it is technically illegal to refuse a ...
ar5975's user avatar
  • 393
4 votes
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Renting Studio with Minimum rental period

In the randstad (the most populous part of the country), most properties will be rented out within days of being put on the market (certainly if you are talking about small-to-medium size, affordable ...
Relaxed's user avatar
  • 5,782
4 votes

Renting Studio with Minimum rental period

Finding a new tenant is a time-consuming procedure, with the risk of the gap where you get no money but still have costs. It's obvious the landlords are interested in finding long-term tenant rather ...
GeoLog81's user avatar
  • 211
4 votes

How to find long term accomodation online in France?

One thing to be aware of is that there are two main legal frameworks for long term rental in France : 'meublé' (furnished) or 'vide' (empty). A 'meublé' will include all furniture (bed, chairs, table, ...
audionuma's user avatar
  • 1,204
4 votes
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EU-citizen, moving to work in Germany, registration issues

Once you arrive to Germany you will have to register your residence at the City Hall in one weeks time. You do it in 10 minutes and it costs nothing. You just use address where you are in Germany. ...
Marko's user avatar
  • 586
4 votes

Do real estate agents in Melbourne actively help you find a rental?

TL;DR: Sorry, expecting to find an apartment in 10 days is completely unrealistic. First, the background: in Australia, it's illegal for a real estate agent to take a commission from a tenant, they ...
lambshaanxy's user avatar
  • 3,746
4 votes

Renting in England without a local credit history

My letting agent ran an international credit check (or rather they asked another company to do this) based on my previous address in Canada (which I had to list as “current address”). They also asked ...
gerrit's user avatar
  • 3,546
4 votes
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Netherlands Renting Registration

This means the rental is potentially legit. Some people illegally sublet apartments, which means the intermediate remains registered at the address and will not permit the tenant to register. If the ...
gerrit's user avatar
  • 3,546
4 votes

Do I still have to pay the Runkfunkbeitrag as a tenant sharing a house with landlords, while paying the "Warmmiete" already?

Well, it would seem to depend on two things: Do you have a separate "appartment"? I don't know if there is an official definition for that, but intuitively, it seems that a separate entrance, kitchen ...
Gala's user avatar
  • 17.4k
4 votes
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Netherlands - How can I avoid paying contract costs to real estate agency?

First of all, get some evidence: A signed written requirement is best; a voice recording is good (and make a transcript); a clear email exchange is not so great, but might do. And now for some actual ...
einpoklum's user avatar
  • 2,778
4 votes

Netherlands - How can I avoid paying contract costs to real estate agency?

I experienced a similar issue in Rotterdam where an agency (Domica, MaxRentals) charged me € 350 in advance in order to secure the house. I complied and paid in order to get the house. After that I ...
Halil's user avatar
  • 193
4 votes
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Rentals to "expats only" in Copenhagen Denmark

I suspect it often means slightly more than just expats, it means "expats who are backed by a large company". The reasons are probably: Increased willingness to pay high rents, and less likelihood to ...
florian's user avatar
  • 166
4 votes

Is there a way to hire someone to view/inspect a house before renting in the United States?

You will have to find and hire someone to inspect the property and report back to you. I am aware of no national or state-level business that does this specific work. OTOH, I haven't searched for it......
DavidRecallsMonica's user avatar
4 votes

Is there a way to hire someone to view/inspect a house before renting in the United States?

A virtual assistant would be able to do exactly this for you, as well as help with other tasks on site and preparations before you make a decision. There are plenty of them out there a simple google ...
Matt Douhan's user avatar
4 votes

Rules about flat rent in Prague

Yes, a fixed term rental contract can't be freely broken early. Rentals are governed by the Czech Civil Code and terminations are addressed by § 2285 and following (in Czech). There are two kinds of ...
TooTea's user avatar
  • 421
4 votes

Cheapest Kautionskonto in Germany?

As far as I am informed only some banks in Germany will still offer the option to open a 'Mietkautionskonto', but most likely you will need to have a checking account with the bank already. For ...
Lóa's user avatar
  • 41
4 votes
Accepted

How to search for rented house in Netherland as an Indian Expat who does not know Dutch?

First, and very importantly: There are some cases of scam attempts, when people pretend to own an apartment, and rent it out supposedly to someone who's about to arrive in the Netherlands - and they ...
einpoklum's user avatar
  • 2,778
3 votes

How to rent an appartment in Germany from Abroad? Need help!

I would suggest putting your belongings (assuming you have quite a lot of stuff to move) into storage, and staying in hotels for a short time until you find somewhere to rent. That gives you the ...
Scott Earle's user avatar
  • 3,315
3 votes

Strategies to find an house/apartment in Germany for expats

For shared flats the #1 resource is WG-gesucht (available in English and the link already points to Seligenstadt. Much of the content is in German only though and it works better in the major cities....
mts's user avatar
  • 625

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