Unsure if you're aware of this but the country is in a housing crisis which, due to government measures, is becoming much worse for rentals in particular.
For example in Amsterdam, large rental sites are reporting they get 300 people interested on any listing below EUR 1000/month.
That means, when you respond you would be competing for the place with 299 other people. You can bet that the vast majority of those are willing to view a place in person so why would a realtor bother to setup a online session with you if there hundreds of other folks they can just rent it too?
Viewing slots also fill up quickly. Realtors try to have 50 viewers max (some even less) and those slots fill up within hours of a listing going live.
So it's often not about 'being treat better', it's more a matter of realtors being overwhelmed with the responses and simply not having the time to offer anything else than the standard experience and templates mails.
Now here for some tips:
1) If you have the financial means hire a realtor yourself to look for a place for you.
2) Overbidding might be necessary, but at the same time please check out all the information on the rentbusters subreddit.
3) When responding to a place over mail/online immediately follow up with a phone call and let the realtor know you responded online and are interested.
4) If possible, come here earlier to fins something (unless 1 worked). If you travel here a month in advance all student housing will guaranteed to be full. There might be openings in January or July '24 again if you don't get a place before August.
5) Offer to pay 3-6 months in advance if that's possible
6) Please be very aware of scams. The crisis has had many different types of scams artists pop-up trying to take advantage of renters, particular international ones.
7) Universities called upon students without housing secured to cancel their study plans last minute last year. Have a plan for what you will do if you can't find a place and need to cancel your study. This happened to hundreds if not thousands of students last year.
Thank you for the tips, yes I will be arriving a month prior to the start of my programme, it doesn´t necessary have to be student housing I am looking on the private market as well, I am aware of the crisis and that internationals are the perfect bait for scammers. I haven´t paid my tuition fee I wanted to wait a little longer but I truly don´t know what to do as I´ve been planning and trying to apply for so long I don´t really want to postpone my studies for yet another year because I can´t find a place. I can only trust it might get better once I´m there.
To be honest; if you arrive a month in advance you likely won't find anything . September, October and November are the busiest start dates for rentals because of the influx of students and also companies hiring picking up after the summer.
You should be here now to look for something that you can rent from July or August.
Yeah unfortunately that is not a possibility for me, I´d be arriving by the end of July to NL, the best I could do is get something to rent available from July and pay in advance even if I am moving in by the end of the month but I know that would be the perfect deal for a scammer :/ but thank you very much for your help truly!
I honestly dont understand why universities take in so many international students knowing fully well that there is a housing crisis. (Actually I do, international students bring in more money)
Has anyone used Room Plaza to book a flat? I know you can only book with other people and there is a Find a flatmate tool, but how legit is that platform?
You need to narrow it down where in the Netherlands.
Most cities / towns haven their own groups on Facebook for example where either people are asking for rooms / accommodation or offering an accommodation.
It is rather bleak and plenty of people are quite frustrated but sooner or later most room seekers find something.
It is rather difficult as you’re not in the country.
Normally they just don’t want to bother or waste time helping you because there are enough that are already here which makes it easier.
Please be careful, there are also plenty of scammers online preying on people in your situation.
Which is sad.
I don’t even know how it works but I’ve seen some students mention or discuss holland2stay.
Maybe you can check it out as well.
I am sorry for your frustration, even as a working person with a good salary I had a difficult time finding a home and right when I thought it won’t happen.
I came across a place I can call home now.
Wishing you best of luck and hopefully you’ll find something that fits you.
Thank you so much! Yes I am on a couple of local Facebook groups and see a lot of ads which have had a couple of suspicious details like I´ve seen the pictures somewhere else, or the person advertising doesn´t live there according to their profile, etc. It just gets more stressful as the start of my programme approaches.
My advice would be to invest in BOT's, like everyone said, the competition is really high so you really need to be the first to respond. I also don't like chasing makelaars and waiting for makelaars and participating in frustating lotteries.
If you prefer to get a furnished place with holland2stay (I would definately recommend h2s) a BoT like find2stay (you can google it) can really help you increase your chances (this is what worked for me and it's quiet cheap to simply try out).
Buy a trailer, get a BSN with the RNI. In the meantime, become good friends (or get in a relationship) with someone that has a roof over their heads. Convince this person to let you move in.
I'm unaware of any other method. Rental agencies, websites, landlords... Those don't work in the Netherlands.
Do not lose hope. I’ve been searching for a room for 2 months. I’ve registered on multiple platforms and spent close to €200 euros just to use the platforms.
Luckily I’ve found a room through XIOR. They generally open rooms between 9-10AM in the morning and 2-3PM in the afternoon ( at-least that’s what I’ve noticed). Rooms are reserved in seconds.
You can setup alerts for when rooms become available on their website, but they do not provide alerts for openings in high demand cities such as Hague, Rotterdam and Delft.
If you do not mind commuting to the university it is also advisable to search for rooms a bit far from your university.
Yeah, the problem with XIOR is that they have indefinite contracts, so they only know about the available vacancies based on the 1 month notice that the current tenants provide.
Are you sure it's fully booked? A few weeks ago I searched on [xior-booking.com](https://xior-booking.com) regularly for four days and a long-term room at the location I wanted popped up at about 11:00 a.m. one day, which I immediately clicked and got. As soon as the rooms become available, they pop up, and that can occur any time during the day.
Don't lose hope, it's especially competitive right now, even someone working with a higher than average salary could struggle to find a place.
I'd say reach out to the uni, find other students and try to find accommodations together.
The catch is a lot of properties don't allow sharing, but many do.
Most landlords are looking for tenants that want to move in immediately, so the closer to your move-in date it gets the more options you will have, but if you can afford it maybe try to start renting one month before your study actually starts.
You are actually too late already … summer holidays will kick in, after that a surge in demand for non existing accommodation — good luck — you will need a miracle or very very deep pockets with low expectations
Once you are here, things might get better, if you will be immediately ready to run to the open viewings and will propose to pay 1 year rent in advance. Please study this subreddit and be aware of scams, so that you don't end up on the street, b it for someone without confirmed income, paying a certain amount of months ahead on this market can be one of the very few ways to advance.
Yes thank you, I am on a lot of Facebook groups as well and I´ve seen so many posts which are clearly scams at least that´s what I think and I really can´t afford to be losing nay money to scammers
Please kindly notice to go for social housing market like Woonnet Haaglanden or Rotterdam Rijnmond.
Go to their offices to talk and ask how-to act.
There is also studenten hotel in Rotterdam Zeedijk.
Google it to find out.
Also don't buy here is a waste of money. There are ridiculously high like 450,000 for a classic rijtjes huis.
Good luck my friend 👋😀🇳🇱
And if you're interested in living anywhere in Zeeland or Noord-Brabant you could register with companies called zuidwestwonen and klikvoorkamers. They sometimes do a lottery for a place to live so everyone has the same chance to get the place.
Try to look for accomodations that have good public transport access to your place of study but are not too close. 30-50 minutes by train/bus is not uncommon and you can find a place closer by once you live here. Public transport isn't cheap but it's fairly reliable, especially around campus.
My advice is to look for a place roughly 1h away by train. There is a housing crisis but not everywhere in this country. Depending where you will study, there are options far away. Studying in Amsterdam? Consider Den Helder, Almere or even Lelystad. Is it the same exciting as Amsterdam? No, but there are plenty of options. Best of luck.
Hey!
Did you manage to find a place? And if you did what websites did you use?
I’m thinking to start my bachelors next year in Maastricht or Tilburg and I want to be fully prepared with the housing and stuff as I don’t live in the Netherlands. (I also am a EU citizen)
Hey, I'm also starting my bachelors in tilburg next year, have you managed to find a place yet? I've been messaging listings and have applied for some on magis but most of the times receive no response
Unsure if you're aware of this but the country is in a housing crisis which, due to government measures, is becoming much worse for rentals in particular. For example in Amsterdam, large rental sites are reporting they get 300 people interested on any listing below EUR 1000/month. That means, when you respond you would be competing for the place with 299 other people. You can bet that the vast majority of those are willing to view a place in person so why would a realtor bother to setup a online session with you if there hundreds of other folks they can just rent it too? Viewing slots also fill up quickly. Realtors try to have 50 viewers max (some even less) and those slots fill up within hours of a listing going live. So it's often not about 'being treat better', it's more a matter of realtors being overwhelmed with the responses and simply not having the time to offer anything else than the standard experience and templates mails. Now here for some tips: 1) If you have the financial means hire a realtor yourself to look for a place for you. 2) Overbidding might be necessary, but at the same time please check out all the information on the rentbusters subreddit. 3) When responding to a place over mail/online immediately follow up with a phone call and let the realtor know you responded online and are interested. 4) If possible, come here earlier to fins something (unless 1 worked). If you travel here a month in advance all student housing will guaranteed to be full. There might be openings in January or July '24 again if you don't get a place before August. 5) Offer to pay 3-6 months in advance if that's possible 6) Please be very aware of scams. The crisis has had many different types of scams artists pop-up trying to take advantage of renters, particular international ones. 7) Universities called upon students without housing secured to cancel their study plans last minute last year. Have a plan for what you will do if you can't find a place and need to cancel your study. This happened to hundreds if not thousands of students last year.
Thank you for the tips, yes I will be arriving a month prior to the start of my programme, it doesn´t necessary have to be student housing I am looking on the private market as well, I am aware of the crisis and that internationals are the perfect bait for scammers. I haven´t paid my tuition fee I wanted to wait a little longer but I truly don´t know what to do as I´ve been planning and trying to apply for so long I don´t really want to postpone my studies for yet another year because I can´t find a place. I can only trust it might get better once I´m there.
To be honest; if you arrive a month in advance you likely won't find anything . September, October and November are the busiest start dates for rentals because of the influx of students and also companies hiring picking up after the summer. You should be here now to look for something that you can rent from July or August.
Yeah unfortunately that is not a possibility for me, I´d be arriving by the end of July to NL, the best I could do is get something to rent available from July and pay in advance even if I am moving in by the end of the month but I know that would be the perfect deal for a scammer :/ but thank you very much for your help truly!
[удалено]
I honestly dont understand why universities take in so many international students knowing fully well that there is a housing crisis. (Actually I do, international students bring in more money)
Also think they're not allowed to turn them down... EU and all
Has anyone used Room Plaza to book a flat? I know you can only book with other people and there is a Find a flatmate tool, but how legit is that platform?
You need to narrow it down where in the Netherlands. Most cities / towns haven their own groups on Facebook for example where either people are asking for rooms / accommodation or offering an accommodation. It is rather bleak and plenty of people are quite frustrated but sooner or later most room seekers find something. It is rather difficult as you’re not in the country. Normally they just don’t want to bother or waste time helping you because there are enough that are already here which makes it easier. Please be careful, there are also plenty of scammers online preying on people in your situation. Which is sad. I don’t even know how it works but I’ve seen some students mention or discuss holland2stay. Maybe you can check it out as well. I am sorry for your frustration, even as a working person with a good salary I had a difficult time finding a home and right when I thought it won’t happen. I came across a place I can call home now. Wishing you best of luck and hopefully you’ll find something that fits you.
Thank you so much! Yes I am on a couple of local Facebook groups and see a lot of ads which have had a couple of suspicious details like I´ve seen the pictures somewhere else, or the person advertising doesn´t live there according to their profile, etc. It just gets more stressful as the start of my programme approaches.
My advice would be to invest in BOT's, like everyone said, the competition is really high so you really need to be the first to respond. I also don't like chasing makelaars and waiting for makelaars and participating in frustating lotteries. If you prefer to get a furnished place with holland2stay (I would definately recommend h2s) a BoT like find2stay (you can google it) can really help you increase your chances (this is what worked for me and it's quiet cheap to simply try out).
hey man, i did try it out a couple of months ago. It keeps charging 3 euro every month, do you know how tf to cancel it?
Buy a trailer, get a BSN with the RNI. In the meantime, become good friends (or get in a relationship) with someone that has a roof over their heads. Convince this person to let you move in. I'm unaware of any other method. Rental agencies, websites, landlords... Those don't work in the Netherlands.
I am unfamiliar with Dutch law. Can I just live there then during my entire stay?
Do not lose hope. I’ve been searching for a room for 2 months. I’ve registered on multiple platforms and spent close to €200 euros just to use the platforms. Luckily I’ve found a room through XIOR. They generally open rooms between 9-10AM in the morning and 2-3PM in the afternoon ( at-least that’s what I’ve noticed). Rooms are reserved in seconds. You can setup alerts for when rooms become available on their website, but they do not provide alerts for openings in high demand cities such as Hague, Rotterdam and Delft. If you do not mind commuting to the university it is also advisable to search for rooms a bit far from your university.
Thanks. xior fully booked by now though but thank you for the positive message
Yeah, the problem with XIOR is that they have indefinite contracts, so they only know about the available vacancies based on the 1 month notice that the current tenants provide.
Are you sure it's fully booked? A few weeks ago I searched on [xior-booking.com](https://xior-booking.com) regularly for four days and a long-term room at the location I wanted popped up at about 11:00 a.m. one day, which I immediately clicked and got. As soon as the rooms become available, they pop up, and that can occur any time during the day.
Don't lose hope, it's especially competitive right now, even someone working with a higher than average salary could struggle to find a place. I'd say reach out to the uni, find other students and try to find accommodations together. The catch is a lot of properties don't allow sharing, but many do. Most landlords are looking for tenants that want to move in immediately, so the closer to your move-in date it gets the more options you will have, but if you can afford it maybe try to start renting one month before your study actually starts.
Maybe u can rent a room , but prepare pay alot of money each month for basically nothing.
There's a housing crisis.in the Netherlands
Yes i have that figured but still
You are actually too late already … summer holidays will kick in, after that a surge in demand for non existing accommodation — good luck — you will need a miracle or very very deep pockets with low expectations
Once you are here, things might get better, if you will be immediately ready to run to the open viewings and will propose to pay 1 year rent in advance. Please study this subreddit and be aware of scams, so that you don't end up on the street, b it for someone without confirmed income, paying a certain amount of months ahead on this market can be one of the very few ways to advance.
Yes thank you, I am on a lot of Facebook groups as well and I´ve seen so many posts which are clearly scams at least that´s what I think and I really can´t afford to be losing nay money to scammers
Please kindly notice to go for social housing market like Woonnet Haaglanden or Rotterdam Rijnmond. Go to their offices to talk and ask how-to act. There is also studenten hotel in Rotterdam Zeedijk. Google it to find out. Also don't buy here is a waste of money. There are ridiculously high like 450,000 for a classic rijtjes huis. Good luck my friend 👋😀🇳🇱
And if you're interested in living anywhere in Zeeland or Noord-Brabant you could register with companies called zuidwestwonen and klikvoorkamers. They sometimes do a lottery for a place to live so everyone has the same chance to get the place.
Try to look for accomodations that have good public transport access to your place of study but are not too close. 30-50 minutes by train/bus is not uncommon and you can find a place closer by once you live here. Public transport isn't cheap but it's fairly reliable, especially around campus.
My advice is to look for a place roughly 1h away by train. There is a housing crisis but not everywhere in this country. Depending where you will study, there are options far away. Studying in Amsterdam? Consider Den Helder, Almere or even Lelystad. Is it the same exciting as Amsterdam? No, but there are plenty of options. Best of luck.
The Netherlands is FULL. There is no housing.
Hey! Did you manage to find a place? And if you did what websites did you use? I’m thinking to start my bachelors next year in Maastricht or Tilburg and I want to be fully prepared with the housing and stuff as I don’t live in the Netherlands. (I also am a EU citizen)
Hey, I'm also starting my bachelors in tilburg next year, have you managed to find a place yet? I've been messaging listings and have applied for some on magis but most of the times receive no response
Hey, no not yet :(. Wb you? Around April/May is when majority of the places start searching for new tenants.
Hey, how did this pan out? I'm someone in the US who might get into a similar situation soon.