What the hell do you have to do to be accepted to rent an apartment in this town???????????? and why does it all take so long to make a decision (or not in my case)?????
I've looked at big flats, small flats, expensive flats, cheap flats, flats in nice areas, flats in not so nice areas, written letters in English and German, befriended tenants, been the first person to apply and still i get rejected..single, white, professional female earning well above the average wage!!
I feel so unsettled here... I just want to make a home...
My husband and I had the same problem when we got here. We applied for at least 60 apartments before we got a nibble, two on the same day.
The things we realised very quickly were:
- Dress nicely. Doesn't matter if its a warm day, wear something that looks slightly formal
- Speak in your broken german and apologise profusely. The person who ended up letting to us (its a flat in a family home converted to units) lent to us because she felt we would be really keen to integrate
- Grow a thick skin. Expats come, and they go. Locals are a better bet. They're less likely to move around. Its not personal, but the whole letting process is as big a pain in the arse for the owner/company as it is for the prospective tenants. So if one thing doesn't work out, breathe deep and move to the next
My agent did all the negotiations and application(s). Most of the property managers in town already knew her and were very comfortable renting a place to one of her clients. She wouldn't show me a place if it was owned and managed by some amateur yokel who has a problem renting to foreigners.
Can your employer give the potential landlord any guarantee for you? We had the guarantee of my husband's employer that they would cover for us if we decided to skip town before the lease was up. They also put up the security deposit before we even moved here.
Get your employer involved. Both times I got an apartment I got the admin assistant at work to give a phone call pretending it was on an official basis. When I was rejected once she called to find out why and asked if it was because I'm a foreigner and they found another apartment in the same building with the quickness.
Amazing. We were allocated the first apartment we applied for and they didn't even ask to see my work contract, bank statements or SCHUFA (although I had with me). There we were also offered a couple of others (we viewed 10 in 24 hours). I had been really worried as we have only been in Berlin 18 months, but no questions. We were looking at the 2000-3500 CHF mark.
It seemed that the apartments not attached to an agent were easy to deal with (although ours is through an agent). Do you have any friends who could view apartments with you and talk to the agent?
Employer is useless sadly (post for another day) - they have written letters also, to no avail..
Looks like i will have to continue to play the 'Basel Routlette' unless anyone has any animals or small children they are prepared for me to sacrafice..
If you're still looking, our apartment is up for rent from 1st November. Nobody had any issues with our language skills and after the viewing as soon as we said we wanted it, it was pretty much ours (our first rented property in Switzerland as well). The agency might ask for betreibung, if you're already here. Also, if you have a car and ok with commute why not look across the border in Germany and France. You don't have to compete with any prospective tenants like over here, they don't make a fuss if you don't speak their language (google translate will do the job nicely) and after dealing with 3-4 agencies it was so nice to be dealt with in a pleasant manner. Speaking of which, we're moving to France (a small village in the middle of nowhere yet still close to border) and getting a detached house with large garden for less money than our current apartment (which is very conveniently located to all stuff that a commuter could wish for - not a sarcasm, it really is). Go figure... PM me if you'd like details about our current flat.
I have now applied for, and got, 3/3 apartments (one I refused as in the end I didn't likethe layout).
What I did:
Had a letter of recommendation from previous landlord Had a letter of recommendation from my Partner (head of my company department) Had a letter of confirmation from HR of my work status and salary Made an effort to talk to the tenants instead of signing the application form and walking away
Seems to have worked for me in Zürich... but then I do also speak a bit of German also.
For us, it has been easy too. We visited maybe 20 places but we got the first one we saw and applied for. What helped was to have all the papers you said, plus we had the relocation agent who new this company well. We also have friends in the complex who spoke about us before we met. We had a wonderful chat with the tennant and they also recommended us. It was a place in high demand and had tons of applications. The fact that my husband speaks GERMAN did indeed help too.
It's easier for landlord to have someone they can actually communicate with.
We also told them about our plans to stay here and settle for good. This has a major I pact too. The previous tennant were living in the house for 7 years.
Or simply coincidence. Not unusual to apply for 20, 30 apartments in urban areas in Switzerland before getting one.
Also, why not consider the towns/villages that are located right around Basel. You won't even realize you're leaving the city if you e.g. move to Binningen or Allschwil etc. Real estate market(s) might be a bit more relaxed in these places. Not all, but some. Worth a try.
sometimes it not what you know but who you know I spent a year looking for an apartment and it was only when a friend of mine who knew the lady at the agency spoke with her was i offered an apartment, good luck hope you get something.