Apartments in Leipzig, Halle and Magdeburg
WARNING: Be aware of fraud accommodation offers - never transfer security deposit or any rental payment before signing the contract or getting to know the landlord !!!
As an enrolled student at any German university you can also find a room at the student hall. These shared flats or single apartments are managed by the student administration (Studentenwerk) and due to the high demand it is recommendable to ask for availabilities well in advance. First they serve students of their own university, but other students or PhDs are accepted in case of disposability.
Studenten-WG/HousingAnywhere: Housing Anywhere offers new and fully furnished studio apartments for short- and long-term rental. (Please note that these apartments can only be rented by students and doctoral candidates.)
Real Estate platforms - houses, flats and rooms to hire
Shared flats
WG-gesucht.de (in English): WG-Gesucht is popular with people looking to move into a shared apartment. It also lists apartments (sometimes fully furnished) for short- and long-term rental. You can change the language of the website to English. Just enter your town into the search bar and select the type of accommodation you are looking for. Under “Other Details” you can set further criteria, such as “Furnished”.
Furnished flats/rooms/houses
HC24 (in English) ---> HC24 offers fully furnished rooms, apartments and houses for short stays. Please note that you can only receive a binding offer and a contract 30 days prior to your arrival.
Private Offerings
Airbnb (in English) ---> Airbnb lists individual rooms and whole apartments, usually furnished, for short- and long-term rental. Please make sure that the host has official permission to let the property, since you will need an official ä Wohnungsgeberbestätigung (landlord’s confirmation) in order to register an Airbnb property as your address in your town of stay.
Daily newspaper Leipzig
Furnished apartments
Wallnuss-Residenz: Furnished appartments for a good price
Hirtzelstraße: Furnished appartments
YUMA apartments Leipzig: YUMA stands for Your Urban Managed Apartment and offers an innovative concept for furnished living, which provides business travellers in particular with a contemporary alternative to standard hotels and conventional serviced or furnished apartments.
Staytoo apartments Leipzig: Staytoo Apartments Leipzig offers apartments of various sizes with en suite bathroom and kitchenette. The apartments are furnished to a high standard. Rent includes all utility bills (heating, water, electricity) and WiFi. There are also communal areas for all residents
Basecamp Leipzig: Basecamp Leipzig rents out studio apartments of various sizes with or without a kitchenette. Rent includes Wi-Fi and all utility bills. The apartments are located in a new building in eastern Leipzig that also boasts various communal areas, a gym, a cinema and a sun deck.
HomeCompany: HomeCompany helps you find furnished apartments or houses for short-term rentals. You can either search on the website or write an email (leipzig@homecompany.de) containing the most important information about your stay (period, rent, number of tenants, apartment size) to the HomeCompany team, and they will look for a suitable apartment on your behalf.
Wunderflats: On the website Wunderflats you can search for furnished apartments in Leipzig. The apartments are for rent for one month and longer. The flats are fully equipped. Searching is possible on their website. The pool of apartments contains different sizes of flats for up to 6 people.
General remark
Compared to other cities in Germany, living in Halle is quite affordable: Many apartments are available and the rent is generally low. Among students and doctoral candidates it is common to live in shared flats (German ‘WG’=Wohngemeinschaft). But you can of course also rent your own apartment. See below for information about how to find accommodation which corresponds to your personal needs.
Daily newspaper Halle
Private and communal apartments
Waldstadt Boardinghouse Halle: simple and cheap furnished apartment for a lower price.
Private and communal apartments: Here you can find links to Halle’s housing companies. Via the website's landing page (go to Startseite) you can also search for current offers, aimed mainly at students. Some of these offers are for available apartments/rooms at halls of residence via the Student Union, where the above allocation rules apply. Note: the website is in German only.
HWG: housing association Halle
Guesthouse from MLU
Georg Forster Haus: The international guesthouse of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina has some furnished apartments for international scholars and researchers at its disposal. They can be rented from 4 weeks to 1 year.
Stud.IP: Stud.IP is an e-learning and communication platform which is used by students and lecturers. It also provides a bulletin board with a category called Wohnungen // WGs where you can find apartment/room rental ads.
Daily newspaper
Private and communal appartments
Die Stadtfelder: housing association (Wohnungsbaugenossenschaft)
WOBAU Magdeburg: housing association
MWG: housing association
GEWO: private housing company
Guidelines for international tenants in Magdeburg
Rental charges
Most apartments in Germany are let unfurnished, although occasionally cooking facilities are provided. The costs for accommodation only are quoted as rent, excluding utilities (in German: Kaltmiete). Added to this, there are additional costs or running costs. What is actually included depends on the rental contract. Usually, charges for heating, water, refuse collection and property management are included in this; they make up approximately 25% of the rent, excluding utilities costs. If the additional costs are already included in the rental charge, this is called rent including all utilities costs (in German: Warmmiete). Electricity is usually charged separately by an electricity supplier of your choice, with which you must register yourself.
Examples of electricity suppliers:
Comparison of electricity suppliers
Deposit (Kaution)
If you rent accommodation, you will generally have to provide a deposit amounting to 2 or 3 months’ rent when you move in. After you move out,the deposit will be returned to you within 3 months, provided that there is
no damage to the accommodation.The rental period begins when both the landlord (Vermieter), and the
tenant (Mieter) have signed the contract. By signing the contract, both parties agree to observe its terms, which set out the amount of rent to be paid (Miethöhe), the rental term (Mietdauer), the number and the size of
the rooms that can be used, the utilities, repair costs, who is responsible for decorating, and how notice (Kündigung) must be given (usually three months in advance).
WARNING: Never transfer money before signing the contract or getting to know the landlord!!!
Obligations in the rent contract
The rent contract may include special rules for the house, often called the Hausordnung. This means that the tenant has to clean (part of) the stairs/hall of the house on a regular basis, and perhaps clear snow from
footpaths around the house in winter. Many rental contracts incorporate these into the Nebenkosten, and the work is done by a facility manager (Hausmeister) or a service company. Most contracts specify that excessive
noise should be avoided between 22.00 and 07.00. If you are planning a party that might be a little loud and go on a little late, you should warn your neighbours in advance. If you are planning to have a pet, please check with
your landlord that pets are allowed.
List of abbreviations
RUNDFUNKBEITRAG/Broadcast contribution
Germany has a public broadcasting service. This includes the group of ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandfunk. These channels are received freely on radio, TV and online. The broadcasting companies have a statutory mandate to inform, educate, counsel and entertain as many people as possible. To achieve this, every household has to pay a broadcasting fee (Rundfunkbeitrag). This fee of currently 17.50 € per month finances the public broadcasters.
When several people live together in one household (couples, families, WGs), the fee has to be paid only by one person.
Registration is possible here (in German only)
More hints and useful information regarding changing address/moving home
you find on MELDEBOX (at the moment only in German)