Relocation & Settling In
An apartment search in Berlin, run for expats.
We source the flats, attend the viewings, and file the application in German while you're still abroad.
The Berlin reality
Forty applicants, one viewing slot, and you three time zones away.
Berlin's rental market is decided in an afternoon. A well-priced flat draws dozens of applications before its first viewing, and the landlord picks from whoever's file is already complete.
That file asks for a Schufa you can't have yet, three payslips from a German employer, and a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung you can't get until you already live somewhere. Arriving from abroad, you compete against people who cleared that bar years ago.
The engagement
Brief, search, file: the same two people throughout.
One point of contact from the brief to the keys, and one part of a full relocation if you need the rest of it handled too.
-
The search profile
A short call about budget, districts & the compromises you won't make. It becomes a written search profile, framed the way Berlin lets flats rather than the way you'd describe home.
-
The shortlist, then the viewing report
We work the portals daily & the Hausverwaltungen weekly. You get a shortlist, then a written report on each flat we attend: light, noise, condition, neighbours, the things photographs are arranged to hide.
-
The dossier, then the Übergabeprotokoll
A landlord-ready dossier goes out within the hour a suitable flat appears. We read the lease clause by clause before you sign, then record the handover protocol that protects your Kaution.
What you get
What the engagement covers.
The Schufa case is handled inside this engagement; the mechanisms are set out on renting without a Schufa.
-
A landlord-ready dossier
The complete German application file: cover note, proof of means, references, and a credible stand-in for the Schufa.
-
Viewings attended for you
In person or on video, with a frank written read on light, noise, condition and the neighbours.
-
The lease read in German
Every clause before you sign: Kaltmiete, Nebenkosten, Kaution, Kündigungsfrist, and the ones worth pushing back on.
-
Handover, recorded properly
A correct Übergabeprotokoll on the day, so a previous tenant's marks aren't quietly charged to your deposit.
-
What it costs
A fixed fee, agreed before we start. Third-party costs billed at cost, never a percentage of your rent.
Why us
Why a Hausverwaltung answers our call.
We keep quiet working relationships with Hausverwaltungen across Berlin, and they answer when we call.
A suitable flat appears, and the application is out within the hour. Berlin decides fast, so we do too, and the file that lands is complete, in German, from a name the office recognises.
Nobody can promise you a lease in a market this tight. We make sure nothing in your file gives a landlord a reason to say no.
Questions
The questions we're asked most.
What does it cost?
A fixed fee for the whole search, agreed before we start. It doesn't move with your rent, and it isn't a percentage of it. Third-party costs, a Schufa report, certified translations, a deposit guarantee, are billed at what they cost. Tell us the budget and the districts and we'll quote before you commit to anything.
Can you start before I arrive in Berlin?
Most clients engage us from abroad, and the search runs better that way because it starts earlier. We attend viewings, file applications and handle the German correspondence while you're still packing. You approve a shortlist by message and sign when there's something worth signing.
I have no Schufa and no German payslip. Is that a problem?
It's the most common case we handle, and it's workable. Proof of funds, an employment contract or offer letter, a translated home-country credit report, a guarantor's Bürgschaft, a larger Kaution or a Mietkautionsversicherung: one or two of those, presented in the right form, answer the question the Schufa was there to answer.
Which districts do you cover?
All of Berlin, from Mitte & Prenzlauer Berg to Charlottenburg, Kreuzberg and the quieter west. We tell you where your budget goes furthest before you fall for a listing it can't reach, and we'll say plainly when a district and a number don't meet.
How long does a search take?
It varies. The budget, the size and how much you'll compromise all move the date, so we give you a realistic timeline at the brief rather than an optimistic one. A search with a workable budget and two or three acceptable districts moves faster than one fixed on a single street.
Do landlords mind that someone applies on my behalf?
That part is routine. Agents & Hausverwaltungen deal with representatives constantly, and a file that arrives complete and in German saves them work. You're named as the tenant throughout and you meet the landlord where they want to meet you. We handle the correspondence, the paperwork and the follow-up around that.
What if I find a flat myself while you're searching?
Send it over and we'll work it. Plenty of clients spot something on a portal or hear about a flat through a colleague, and the application, the lease review and the handover are the same job whoever found it. The fee is for the engagement, not for a finder's introduction.
Keep exploring
You may also need
Begin
Tell us the flat you're looking for.
Your budget, the districts you'd live in, and the date you need to be in. That's enough for us to quote and to tell you honestly what it will take.