The right accommodation for you depends on your individual professional and personal needs. We have compiled a comprehensive overview of the different options.
Shared apartments
For those who are coming to Austria alone, WGs or Wohngemeinschaften (shared living arrangements) are often a good option as you can live cheaply and meet new people. WG's are most common among students and young professionals, but you can also find shared apartments among older ones. Living in a WG obviously means sharing kitchen and bathroom. Be aware that WG-Zimmer is often not furnished. The main challenges are to find a place and to make sure you are going to be able to get along with who you are living with. Have a good talk with your prospective flatmate/s to make sure your lifestyle expectations match. Conflicts (concerning cleaning up, using the bathroom, cooking…) are all easy ways to get into uncomfortable arrangement. So watch out before moving to somebody you might not get along with or it can also be a good idea to draw up a plan.
Temporary accommodation
If you intend to stay in Austria for a limited time, you can consider temporary accommodation, which is also a solution as an interim solution before settling in more permanently. In Austria, tenants are often allowed to sublet their apartment for a limited time. Since many young people travel a lot, this is actually quite common. Sublets can generally be found under the terms Untermiete or Zwischenmiete. This means that the flats or rooms are sublet with a contract signed with the tenant, not the landlord.
Furnished apartments
A hotel is great for your first couple of weeks in Austria, but if you're staying for longer then a fully furnished apartment makes life the easiest. For short-term expats they offer a great way of avoiding the hassle of sorting out internet contracts and utilities, and will save you money on buying furniture and appliances.
You can start your search for a furnished apartment in Austria with Tempoflat , one of Austria's latest housing portals.
Mitwohnzentralen - a fast way to find accommodation
A good way to find temporary accommodation is to contact the local Mietwohnzentrale if there is one in your town. These agencies concentrate on finding furnished rooms in Wohngemeinschaften and furnished apartments for limited periods of between one month and one year. They charge a fee for their services.
Mietwohnzentrale Vienna
If you’re searching for a small apartment, a room or a shared apartment in Vienna, the accommodation centre will help you to find it. Either for short or long time, close by the city or metropolitan area. Ask for an accommodation request form (Vermittlungsauftrag) to be sent to you. It is worth following up your request with all the agencies at regular intervals. Do not pay any charges in advance, agencies are only allowed to charge commission once a legally binding rent agreement has been signed.
Jugendwohnhäuser
(Accommodation possibilities for young people)
Another possibility to find a cheap short term accommodation is a Jugendwohnhaus. The city Vienna offers therefore young people under the age of 30, which are working ore training here in Vienna a place to live. The kinds of accommodation are single bedrooms, 1-room studios and 2-room-studios. The housing units are generally equipped with telephone as well mainly SATV. Further facilities like laundry, sauna, gymnastic room and library can be used by the inhabitants. Furthermore contains the monthly amount all working expenses, consumption fees for electricity, warm and chilled water as well as central heating.
Further details: www.kwj.at , www.oejab.at , www.kolping.at