Cutting through the red tape (part 1)

There, I did it! Finally the post I've promised to write!

But first I'll quickly tell you a bit more about my to-be flat. As I mentioned earlier, it's situated between U-Kotti and U-Prinzenstraße, which will shorten my way to the university a tiny bit. Although the neighbourhood isn't the most hip & coolest like e.g. Graefekiez in the neighbourhood of Graefestraße (also in Berlin, maybe about a km from where I'll be living), which is super popular, it's location is excellent. Public transport is near and plenty, Kottbusser Tor and Oranienstraße with their numerous Turkish markets, bars and restaurants and such are just around the corner, but far enough to keep it calm and nice. I have a lovely park view, which can also be admired from the balcony (!). Central heating, and according to the woman whose place it is, the flat is very warm even in winter, aahh! The building itself is exceptionally ugly and high, I think it's got ten storeys or something. And a lift, quite a modern one even! Practically no houses have lifts here, and if they do, they're so old and unsteady (and slow) that you'd just better take the stairs. I for my part am very glad to have a lift from the 20th century, for I'll be living on the eighth floor, and the washing machines, which are in common use, are on the attic :D It's huuuuge, 39 m², nicely furnished, and has enough place in the kitchen for a humane cooking experience! I just can't wait to move in :)

So, enough of that and let's proceed, or maybe precede? to the process of renting a flat in Berlin. University enrolment was also one hell of a bureaucracy process, but I'll dedicate a post of its own to that.

There.
Picture: DBR62 @ Flickr

Most of the people in Berlin live in rental flats, meaning that for the most part flats aren't owned or given for long-term lease by private persons. Instead that is taken care of by a Hausverwaltung, which literally translates into house administration or something. They are (numerous) companies, ranging from small family businesses to huge, posh companies on Kudamm, that at the same time are housing companies, housing agencies and house managing/maintenance agencies. They normally own numerous flats in many different houses around the city, and thus aren't like the very locally operating housing companies or house managing/maintenance agencies e.g. in Finland.

If you're renting a flat just for a fixed period as a subtenant from a private person, you'll probably get away with the whole flat renting thing relatively easily. You necessarily won't be needing more papers and certificates than a nice personality (or at least the ability to give that impression) and a sublease contract. You might find a flat thats (nicely) furnished, maybe even with a washing machine, fridge, stove, oven, sink and such.

"Yeah, okay. Furnished is luxury, washing machine isn't something necessarily found in every rental flat, fridge... stove... what?" That's right. Often flats are rented just with their walls, and all the rest is the lessees problem. Well, maybe there are a couple of windows here and there, some flats have a sink, and maybe a floor and a bathroom that need some redoing. On the lessees expense. With a contract obliging the lessee. So don't expect to walk into a ready-to-live-in flat, you'll be doing some serious shopping for very basic domestic appliances to a start.

Or well, actually that isn't the start, since you'd of course have to had gone through the rental appliance process. With Hausverwaltungs, you won't be doing anything with a pretty face, since you won't be even meeting them during the process, as it is the current lessee whose responsibility it is to find candidates to be the following lessee. But don't bother to put immense effort on impressing him/her, for he/she won't be making the decision, just shows the flat and forwards the PAPERS to the Hausverwaltung.

And the Hausverwaltung definitely does not care about anything but the papers. As a start, you'll need to fill in a form where you state that you are interested in the flat and fill in every possible information about yourself. Attached, a copy of your ID (passport or such) and evidence of your incomes for the past three months. You will also want your former landlord or -lady to fill in a form that you have no rental debts (Mietschuldenfreiheitsbescheinigung, don't you just love the language :D), you can find one e.g. here.

Then comes the tricky part. Almost without a doubt, the Hausverwaltung will want a SCHUFA-Auskunft, your German credit information certificate. To get one, you'll need a German bank account (I applied for my SCHUFA-Auskunft at the same time when I opened my bank account). To open a German bank account, you'll need to be registered as a Berlin citizen and have some sort of proof of what you're doing in Berlin (studying, working, else: what? etc.). To be registered as a citizen, you'll need an address in Berlin.

Well, the good news is that at least I wasn't asked for more papers at the Bürgeramt (the registry office) than my passport and my rental contract, and my temporary flat was just fine by them. And I didn't need to wait in some dodgy office for hours, but to my extreme surprise Berlin is totally 2058 and has an internet booking system! The first time available wasn't until in the next week, but I wasn't in a hurry so it was ok. The registration process itself took maybe 10 minutes or so, so that part wasn't especially torturous.

Summa summarum: if you're looking for a long-term flat in Berlin, I suggest you begin by renting a flat for 1–2 months. That's possible even from abroad, and you'll at least have some place to live in before you find The Flat. You'll also have the time to get all your papers in order and get to check the flats out yourself. And it's much more stress-free to be looking for a flat for e.g. a month, instead of a smothering "it would be great if I could find a flat in two-weeks-ago's time" timetable and living in a hostel.

Rents have gone up quite a bit, a couple of years ago it wasn't at all a utopian thought to find a studio flat in a nice area for 250–300 Euros, but nowadays 400 Euros isn't all that rare. There still are (unfurnished) flats for <300 Euros, but there are lot of applicants also. Well, compared to Helsinki the rents are still ridiculous (or rather it's the other way around), there rents for tiny studios start from almost 600 Euros... As probably everywhere, the bigger the flat, the cheaper it proportionally it is. Two-roomers' rents start from about 400–450. There are in theory two rental sums: the Kaltmiete ("Cold rent") is just the rent, whereas Warmmiete ("Warm rent") includes the Nebenkosten (side costs), which usually consists of heating and (warm) water costs, sometimes also gas and/or electricity. So check the Warmmiete for the actual rental costs.

A good site when looking for a flat is WG-Gesucht.de. I warmly recommend also putting in your own ad.

Phew! There you have it, a short (?) guide for flat renting in Berlin. Good luck! And, good night, and good weekend. I'll be spending the weekend moving to my temporary flat in Prenzlauer Berg and in Dresden. So until next week, ta-ta!