Hey fellows,
You have trouble to find a nice, sweet and affordable accommodation in France?
No worries we'll try to explain you how to get an accommodation in France from scratch!
On this page you will discover precious information:
- To find an Accommodation in France
- To get the paperwork of your housing lease contract done
The housing tips you will get in this page suits you:
- If you are a student looking for an accommodation, a flat or a student's room
- If you are a worker with a labor contract looking for an accommodation, a flat or a room to share in a flat
- If you are a trainee that will do an internship and if you look for an accommodation, a flat or a room to share in a flat
The housing solution in France provided on this page won't work if you are looking for a short term stay like only a single week!
If you are backpacking or if you are just looking for a short term stay solution, you will find your solution on the city you will go on the Discover France section ;).
It's time to find your new home :)
The Different type of Accommodation in France
Before you go any further you might need first to find an accommodation in France:
If you are tired of finding irrelevant classified ads in French on internet, you can start to make your research in the Erasmus of Paris search box here!
Results will display on your screen in English and concern the French territory!
To understand better your accommodation lease and the terms use by the landlords in the classified housing ads, you can have a look to the French classified ads vocabulary here!
The Students Résidences – Public Hall of Residences (University Dorms):
Only available for Students, the Public Hall of Residences are supported by the financial help of the French State.
The Public Students Hall of Residences are generally the cheaper room to stay in France, whatever the French city you'll be!
Usually, it's quite difficult to get a room in a Public Hall of Residence because your accommodation application will be mixed in the housing application list with tons of other students' accommodation application.
So Public Students Hall of Residence are for you if you can wait to get a room and if you are not in the rush to get a room!
And by the way, you will have more chance to get your accommodation application validated if you can't afford to pay a private students room rent. So most of the students in the Public Students Hall of Residence benefit of a scholarship of their own state to make their studies!
If you do apply in Public Students Hall of Residence, get in mind to keep on searching a flat or a room in a private residence or with a private owner. Check the search box here to get answer in English ;)
The Public Students Hall of Residence in France are Managed by the "Crous".
Have a look on the search box here to see if you will have a Crous Residence in the city you'll go for your studies :
The Students – Young Workers Residences – Private Hall of Residences:
As the title mention it, the rooms in those residences are dedicated for students or young workers (expats, trainees, volunteers…)
In France you have a plethora of Private Hall of Residences with affordable rooms!
A room in those residences is easier to get than in the Public Hall of Residence.
The atmosphere of Private Hall of Residences in France is young and multicultural.
Most of those Private Hall of Residences are much more than just a bed in a room!
The Private Hall of Residences are located on nice campus where you'll be able to meet tons of nice people from around the world. You will also be able to assist to amazing events organized by the Residence Staff!
The Private Hall of Residences for Students and Young Workers are managed by private companies or students/workers organizations.
Start to search for the Private Hall of Residence in the Search Box Here!
More information and full Private Hall of Residence list for Paris and its suburbs here:
Private Hall of Residence for France for France are about to come, make a research on the search box now ;)
Find a Room or a Flat by Renting to a Private Owner (Landlord Rental):
A good way to find your new home in France is to rent a room or a flat to a private owner.
The benefit to rent a room or a flat with a private owner is that you will be able to find a room, a flat or even a house in all the French territory including the smallest villages!
As you will directly deal your accommodation application with the landlord, the answer to get your accommodation is faster than if you have to deal with the bureaucracy of the Hall of Residences. Your lease can be easily done in a day is you fit all the rental conditions (have a look below to see which paperwork will you need to get your lease contract done).
You will also be able to decide if you want to book:
- A flat just on your own
- A room that you have in a big apartment or house you will share with flat mates
And trust me, sharing a flat and renting a room is a good solution to save money and make new friends in a country you don't know yet.
House sharing is how I found my own accommodation when I have make my Erasmus Exchange in Portugal, and my flat mates were all amazing people that became my best friends :)
Start looking for flat share in English here: http://search.erasmusofparis.fr
Housing Paperwork – Get Your Lease Contract Done!
Here is a quick overview of which paperwork you will need to present to landlords to get an accommodation in France.
First of all, I'm not a layer so you should always consider what you see here as just tips to help you to get your accommodation paperwork done but not as a translation of the rental housing French law.
Depending of the place you'll rent and depending of the landlords you will have the requiring documents might differ.
You will found below a basic list of the rental documents in France, but keep in mind to stay flexible to the requirement of the person you will deal with to get your accommodation.
To avoid any rental scams, do not only look to articles on internet to help you, find real lawyers!
To be continued…
Ps: Erasmus of Paris does its best to keep the accommodation information up to date. However, we cannot guarantee that the information provided is always current or complete. We aren't landlord or layer. If you have trouble with you lease application or contract you might ask a real juridical assistance. If one of the tips provided in the housing in France seems out of date, contact us and give us the correct information so we can update the article ;)