Shared flats and individually rented flats

Many students prefer living in a shared flat to staying in a hall of residence (Studierendenheim), or even want to rent a flat on their own. In either case, we strongly recommend making yourself familiar with the following information sites before starting your search for a flat:

Where do I start to look for a flat?

The following website is explicitly aimed at students looking for a flat or a shared flat:

You will find more information about flat-hunting in Vienna on the following site:

Tenancy agreements for shared flats

When sharing a flat with other people, you should make sure that the tenancy agreement (Mietvertrag) is legally sound. There are several ways of concluding a tenancy agreement in shared flats:

  • One person is the main tenant (Hauptmieter/Hauptmieterin): One person signs the tenancy agreement and becomes the main tenant. The other people living in the flat are subtenants (Untermieter/Untermieterin) only. Problems may arise, when the main tenant moves out and the subtenants are not able to take over the agreement.
  • All occupants are main tenants of the flat: All persons living in the flat sign the tenancy agreement and therefore have equal legal protection. The tenancy agreement does not change if any one of them moves out. Subsequently, new occupants must be granted the same tenancy rights.
  • Each occupant is the main tenant of their own room: Separate tenancy agreements are signed between the landlord or landlady and each person living in the flat for the room they are occupying.

If you need advice on tenancy agreements, you can contact the advisory centre for housing law issues (Wohnrechtsberatung) at the Austrian National Union of Students (Österreichische Hochschüler/innenschaft - ÖH) (German) or any other institution listed in the section Advice.

City-owned flats for students

The City of Vienna runs a special project to allocate city-owned flats also to students (German). You can apply for them, when you meet the following criteria:

  • You must be enrolled at a university or university of applied sciences (Fachhochschule) in Vienna
  • You must be between 17 and 26 years of age
  • You must either be an Austrian citizen, or a citizen of another EU member state, of an EEA country or Switzerland, or a recognised refugee, or a third country national holding a permanent residence permit "Daueraufenthalt-EU" pursuant to the Law on Residence and Settlement in Austria (Niederlassungs- und Aufenthaltsgesetz - NAG)
  • You must have had your primary or secondary residence in a hall of residence in Vienna for at least a year
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