FAQ

Please be prepared to have to wait for a place in one of our student residences, in particular at the start of the winter semester. Waiting times vary between cities and student residences.

Please read the information about the allocation procedure to find out if you are eligible for a place in one of our student residences.

The Studierendenwerk Würzburg offers different types of housing: single apartments, shared apartments (2-5 persons, depending on the student residence) and apartments for students with children.

You should first get some information about our student residences and how much rent we charge.
You can find all the information that you need under “Accommodation”. Our move-in guide is a particularly valuable source of information that will tell you more about the allocation procedure and what you have to keep in mind when applying for a place.

For the application procedure, you will need a valid enrolment certificate (“Immatrikulationsbescheinigung”) or a letter of admission (“Zulassungsbescheid”) from your university and a scan of your ID card or passport.

Fill in our application form and state your preferred type of housing, student residence and move-in date (must be the first day of a month). After you have submitted your application, you will receive an auto-generated email with a confirmation link. If you do not click that confirmation link, your application will not be forwarded to us!

As soon as we have a room for you, we will send you a room offer and the corresponding contract documents. Please follow the instructions in the room offer. It is important that you meet the deadline stated in the offer.

Example: You upload your ID document/the certificate from your school instead of the letter of admission from your university.

If you notice that you need to make changes to your application for a place in a student residence, you will have to submit a new application.

You can find “to let” ads from private landlords in the “Private accommodation” section of our website.

We give students with disabilities preferential consideration when allocation places in our student residences. If you have a disability, please let us have a document as proof, e.g. a photocopy of your disability card (“Schwerbehindertenausweis”) or letters from the competent authorities (“Versorgungsamt” etc.). You can upload these documents when you complete our online application form. We also offer some housing units that are barrier free or barrier reduced.

If you move to your university city, you will have to register your new residence (even if it is just your secondary residence) with the competent residents’ registration office (“Bürgerbüro”) within 14 days after your move. More information can be found on the web pages of the cities of Würzburg, Bamberg, Schweinfurt and Aschaffenburg.

To be able to register your residence, you will need what is called a landlord’s confirmation letter (“Wohnungsgeberbestätigung”). You will receive that letter from your caretaker when you collect your keys.

For organisational reasons, we are not able to give you the opportunity to view our apartments/rooms in advance. However, you can always ask current tenants to let you have a look at their rooms. Pictures of most room types can be found on our website.

• There are no gaps between tenants in our student residences. In addition, the previous tenants have paid the rent until the end date of their rental contract and therefore have the right to use their rooms until the last working day of their rental period.
• This is why we will not be able to let you have the keys for your room before the first working day of your rental period. As a rule, we do not hand over keys on weekends or public holidays (see section “Key handover”). We apologise for any inconvenience caused.
• As there are no gaps between tenants, it may happen that there are defects in your room and/or that any necessary repairs, e.g. repainting, will not be carried out until after you have moved in.
• When you move in/collect your keys, you will receive a move-in walkthrough document, on which you will have to record any defects or similar that you find when you move in.
• Please be aware that any defects that you do not report within seven days after your move-in date will be deducted from your deposit when you move out.

In normal circumstances, keys will be handed over only Monday to Friday during the regular office hours of your caretaker.

If the start date of your rental contract is a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, you will receive your key on the following working day. This does not entitle you to a rent reduction.

At the start of the winter semester, hundreds of tenants move in and out during just a few days. Therefore, please be prepared to wait.

Make arrangements for your move out as soon as possible and agree on a date and time for your move-out walkthrough with your caretaker.

Tip: You can save yourself a lot of stress if you do not move in on the first day of the month but a few days later.

You will have to make monthly advance payments of your utility charges, e.g. heating, hot water, electricity as well as water and sewer. We regularly adjust the amount of these advance payments based on the consumption in the previous year.

Here you can find the english translation details of operating costs (PDF file).

We want to offer affordable housing to as many students as possible. This is why rental periods are limited. The regular rental period is a maximum of 7 semesters or, respectively, is based on the maximum funding period under the BAföG act and the rotation principle. More information can be found in the regulations governing the allocation of places in our student residences.

There are shopping facilities available near our student residences. Please find out where you can find them.

We advise all of our tenants who do not have liability insurance coverage through their families to take out liability insurance. It is easy to cause damage, and such damage can cost you vast amounts of money.

The Studierendenwerk Würzburg employs caretakers to keep its student residences in a good condition. In normal circumstances, you will be expected to submit a written defect report when you find a defect in your housing unit or student residence. In cases where urgent action is required, you can also call to report a defect.

Please leave all repairs to our caretakers, they are trained professionals. If you carry out repairs yourself, in particular if the water supply or electricity is concerned, you may cause water damage or fires!

In normal circumstances, your caretaker will enter your room after he or she has received your defect report in order to repair the defect you have reported. If you do not want your caretaker to do so, please state this in writing when you report the defect to him or her.

Please terminate your rental contract with effect from the end of the semester and make sure you give the amount of notice required by your rental contract. The applicable notice period can be found in your rental contract. If you want to move back in after you return, please submit a new online application at least three months prior to your desired move in date and upload a document that proves that you have spent the semester abroad.

After you have submitted your application, you will receive an auto-generated email with a confirmation link. If you do not click that confirmation link, your application will not be forwarded to us!

All rooms in our student residences are equipped with an internet connection, some rooms have WiFi. Bandwidths, conditions and/or routers vary between student residences. The costs are included in the rent.

If your bank account details change, you will have to send us a written notice, which must be signed by the account holder.

Please inform us of any changes to your bank account details as soon as possible to ensure that we will continue to receive your rent payments.

Please contact the rental accounting department responsible for your student residence directly in order to receive the form you will have to complete. The details of your contact persons can be found below.

All of our housing units have built-in kitchens with an electric cooker (the kitchens in most of our shared apartments also have an oven) and a sink. The tenants of shared apartments share a kitchen.

Each tenant is responsible for keeping their kitchen clean. If extra cleaning by external cleaning companies becomes necessary, e.g. due to a tenant’s lack of cleanliness, the tenants of the affected apartment will have to pay for that extra cleaning.

Each tenant is responsible for ensuring a healthy temperature and air quality in their apartment. Please also pay attention to the specific conditions in your student residence (e.g. passive ventilation). If you notice mould in your apartment, you must notify your caretaker IMMEDIATELY. You will have to bear any costs incurred by us as a result of you tampering with ventilation systems. 

General rule: Open your windows fully three times a day for 10 minutes each. Tilting your windows open is not sufficient.

More information can be found in our information sheet on the correct heating and airing of rooms.

The regulations of the local waste disposal providers apply. Please read the information about waste separation that has been posted in your student residence. Not separating waste correctly leads to higher disposal costs, which will have to be paid by all tenants of the residence.

Our rooms are fully furnished. They have:

• a wardrobe
• shelves
• a desk and an office chair
• a bed including a mattress
• a chair

You will have to bring other items, e.g. your own pots and pans, crockery, bed sheets, pillow, duvet, TV, hair dryer, towels, toilet brush and shower curtain.

Details of the individual amenities can be found in the description of your student residence.

Parking facilities and the fees charged for them (if any) vary between student residences. More information can be found in the description of your student residence. The student residences in the city centre of Bamberg do not have parking facilities for motor vehicles.

All student residences have bicycle parking facilities, most of which are covered and fenced.

Cleaning their rooms/apartments, shared kitchen and bathroom is the responsibility of our tenants. The tenants of shared apartments often have arguments about uncleaned shared rooms (kitchen, bathroom, toilet). The Studierendenwerk reserves the right to have rooms/apartments cleaned by external cleaning companies. The associated costs will be charged to the tenants of the respective rooms/apartments.

All rooms are equipped with smoke alarm devices. Some of these devices are connected to a central fire alarm system. Any tampering with smoke alarm devices (e.g. removing them or putting something on or over them) will be considered a misuse of safety equipment and will be punished. In addition, you will have to pay for any damage caused by tampering with the devices.

Please air your room/apartment thoroughly if smoke builds up from cooking, candles, shishas etc. In that way, you can avoid setting the alarm off accidentally. If the non-compliance of a tenant with the applicable rules causes a fire fighting operation, that tenant will have to pay for that operation!

Smoking is not welcome in our housing units. It goes without saying that smokers think of their flatmates and neighbours. Please also think of the tenants that will move in after you leave - all furniture as well as the walls and floor will smell of smoke, as we won’t be able to replace them every time a new tenant moves in.

If you smoke in your housing unit anyhow, we reserve the right to charge you for the cleaning and any new furniture that we may have to buy. Tenants are responsible for ensuring that their visitors, too, do not throw cigarette butts out of the window or from the balcony.

It is the responsibility of the tenants to ensure that they fulfil their obligation to pay the public broadcasting licence fee (also known in German as “GEZ-Gebühr”). It is not included in the rent.

If you find a defect in your room or apartment, complete our defect report form and submit it to your caretaker.

If you notice pests in your room/apartment (e.g. bedbugs), please notify your caretaker IMMEDIATELY!

General duty to provide information under Section 36 VSBG [Bonn]

We are neither obliged nor willing to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board (“Verbraucherschlichtungsstelle”) according to the German act on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (“Verbraucherstreitbeilegungsgesetz”, VSBG).

According to the VSBG, we are, however, obliged to provide you with the details of a competent consumer arbitration board:

Allgemeine Verbraucherschlichtungsstelle des Zentrums für Schlichtung e. V., Straßburger Str. 8, 77694 Kehl, Germany. 

Web: www.verbraucher-schlichter.de

If you are already living in one of our student residences and want to move to another one, please submit a new application online. You will then be placed on the general waiting list. You can move to another student residence once in the entire rental period. You cannot move to another housing unit in the same student residence. Moving to another student residence is not permitted in Aschaffenburg and Schweinfurt.

In certain circumstances, students are entitled to the “Wohngeld” rent subsidy. More information can be obtained from the social counselling team of the Studierendenwerk Würzburg.

All student residences are equipped with washing machines and dryers. You will have to pay for each use of them.

• Please agree on a move out date with your caretaker as soon as possible - doing so will help to avoid scheduling problems and waiting times!
• Make sure you vacate your housing unit by your move out date and leave it in a clean condition. If necessary, you can ask your caretaker for suitable materials and tips.
• Please do not throw everything you no longer need in the bin on the day you move out - doing so would cause the bins to spill over! Disposing of bulky waste and electronic waste is the responsibility of the tenant, not the responsibility of the Studierendenwerk.
• Do not forget to take your bike when you leave!
• Remember to arrange for your mail to be forwarded to your new address.
• Tip: Moving out early will increase your chances of getting your entire deposit back, as you will then have time to do any extra cleaning that may be needed.

You will get your deposit back if you fulfil all obligations that you have under your rental contract. As a rule, the deposit or, respectively, the portion of the deposit that is not kept by the landlord will be transferred to a bank account to be specified by the tenant no later than six months after the end date of the rental period. A reasonable portion of the deposit will be retained for subsequent payments for utility charges that are expected to become due.

You will have to give the amount of notice agreed upon in your rental contract.