Housing in Germany

How to find an apartment

This guide helps you find an apartment for rent in Berlin. It explains everything from the housing search to moving in.

• Berlin rent prices map
  See the rent per m² in each Berlin neighbourood
• Common housing scams
  Apartment scams you must know about when looking for a place to live in Germany.
• How to get a Schufa
  If you are applying for an apartment in Berlin, you will almost always be asked to include a Schufa in your application. This is how you obtain a Schufa-Auskunft for free

Moving in

All the little things you should do when moving to a new address in Germany: address changes, mail forwarding and more.

• How apartment deposits work
  Here's how you pay your apartment deposit (Mietkaution) in Germany, and how you get all of it back when you move out.
• How to get key doubles
  This is how you make copies of your apartment keys for cheap.
• How electric bills work
  This guide explains how you pay for electricity in Germany, and how to lower your power bills.
• How the TV tax works
  The TV tax is a broadcasting tax that every German household must pay. Here is how it works.
• Quiet hours and noise laws
  Here's how the quiet hours work in Berlin, and what to do with loud neighbours in Berlin
  • How to make a noise complaint
    If you are dealing with loud neighbours in Berlin, this is how you file a noise complaint with the Ordnungsamt.
• Review of Conny rent reduction
  A neutral, independent review of Conny's rent reduction service.

Changing your address

This guide explains how to change your address and redirect your mail.

• How to register your address
  This guide explains how to do your Anmeldung in Berlin. This is how you register your address, and how you get a Meldebescheinigung and a tax ID.
• How to get a Bürgeramt appointment
  This is how you get an appointment at the citizens' office in Berlin. This is required for the Anmeldung and many other services.
• How to get a Mel­de­be­schei­ni­gung
  This is how you get a Meldebescheinigung - a copy of your Anmeldebestätigung - in Berlin.

Moving out

Everything you must do when leaving your apartment: ending your lease, changing your address, hiring a moving company and more.

• How to deregister your address
  If you leave Germany, you must do your deregister your address. This is called the Abmeldung. This guide shows you how to do it in Berlin.
• What to do if you lose your keys
  How to replace your lost or stolen keys, and how to call a locksmith and get back into your apartment.
• How to leave Germany
  Instructions for leaving Germany and moving to another country.
  • How to get a pension refund
    If you left Germany, you get your German pension payments back. It can be worth thousands of euros.