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Accommodation

When moving aboard the challenge of finding the right housing isn't easy and knowing whether to rent or buy is another question to contemplate. The city center is always attractive and a popular choice but of course budget and size can be the deciding factor in finding an available place.

Southern Sweden offers a variety of housing from the city centre to beautiful areas that are suitable not only for families but the individual looking for tranquillity without jeopardizing close proximity to the city centre. International Citizen Hub Lund provides information on finding accommodation which is not a replacement for Relocation services. For those of you who are not offered this service, you can find links below to help with your search for housing.

Useful links when looking for accommodation/housing

If you want to buy or sell an apartment/a house the most popular website is:

Hemnet

If you want to rent ("hyra") an apartment/a house one of the most popular websites is:

Blocket Bostad

If you want to stay short term an aparthotel might be an option:

Forenom Aparthotels - Lund

Forenom Aparthotels - Malmö

Råbylunds gård - Lund

The more hotel - Lund

The more hotel - Malmö

Beautiful apartments, Beaps - Lund

Beautiful apartments, Beaps - Malmö

Movinn - Lund and Malmö

Samtrygg - a safe marketplace for home rentals

For more tips and links please check these steps by Sweden.se:

"10 steps for planning your move to Sweden"

Renting

In the rental market, you will find both private and municipal landlords. Rental apartments are more common than houses although there has been an increase of house owners renting out on a one to two year basis. Housing co-op’s frequently use waiting list systems, and these systems often mean a waiting period of several years before being eligible to secure a rental contract.

Most rentals come unfurnished; however, privately-owned landlords tend to rent apartments partially or fully furnished. Whether you buy or rent accommodation, you will find a stove, oven, fridge and freezer in the apartment or house.

Most apartment buildings have bookable laundry rooms. While others include a washer and dryer inside the apartment. In some cases, a dishwasher is also available. Heating and hot water are generally included in the rent but other services such as electricity, broadband, etc. may or may not be included.

It is important to note that to register as a resident of Sweden, a place of residence is also required. If you take out a bank loan or mortgage to buy a house or an apartment, you can deduct the interest paid on the loan from your taxable income.

If you plan on subletting an apartment or room, it is recommended to first view the property and meet with the landlord. Once ready to sublet or rent, we recommend that you take lots of pictures and note any defects that exists before you take over the property. Share this information with your landlord. This will help avoid any future disappointment or disputes that may arise. We also recommend you look into property insurance.

Read more about renting at the website of The Swedish Union of Tenants, "Hyresgästföreningen":

Hyresgästföreningen

Colorful houses at Adelgatan in the heart of Lund

Buying

When buying housing, it can be in the form of ordinary ownership (typical for houses), or by becoming a member of a housing co-op (standard for apartments, units and common with semi-detached houses).

Buying a unit in Sweden does not provide the buyer with full ownership. What it gives the buyer is an economic interest with a tenant in it. After purchasing a unit, the buyer has certain rights on what they can and cannot do to the property. In Sweden this is referred to as “bostadsrätt”.

If you are looking to buy a unit in Sweden, first contact some local real estate agents to find out more about your rights and what fees (“avgift”) are involved. Fees are often paid out monthly and can pose a significant expense.

In most cases when buying a house, you own both the property and house, "friköpt tomt", but there are some exceptions when the land is not included, "äganderätt". Your real estate agent can tell you more about this.

If you’re looking at buying your own place, Hemnet is the most popular site - see link above.

If you take out a bank loan or mortgage to buy a house or an apartment, you can deduct the interest paid on the loan from your taxable income.

Insurance

All homes in Sweden should have homeowner’s insurance. Homeowner’s insurance is normally quite affordable in Sweden and often cheaper than in other countries.

More information about house insurance

Utilities

Whether renting a house or apartment, you will often need to choose a service provider to meet your daily utility needs. If you rent through a Co-op and have not arranged your own service provider/s, a service provider might be assigned to you. Typical examples might be for water (“vatten”) and electricity (“el”). While these providers will do an adequate job, it is often not the cheapest rate available.

There are several service providers available to choose between, and outside of internet providers, many of these advertise different rates depending on the time of year. Compricer and Elpriskollen are two popular price comparison websites, with the latter available for use in multiple languages.

If you need more information The Swedish Consumers' Banking and Finance Bureau, "Konsumenternas", can give you advise and help for free. They also provide many useful tips and news feeds on their website.

Konsumenterna's website

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