The number of foreigners visiting Poland is growing every year. Regardless of the purpose of the visit (tour, study or work), visitors need to solve for themselves the primary task: where to live. And this problem, of course, can be solved: many employers provide housing to their employees, Polish universities provide hostels for students, and hostels and hotels are waiting for tourists. At the same time, many foreign citizens would like to simply rent an apartment in Poland for a while. As you know, demand creates supply, so here you can always find a suitable housing option for yourself.
Specificity of the Polish real estate market
After the 2009 crisis, the cost of housing in Poland has stabilized and now stands at 85-90% of the 2008 peak prices. According to the NBP (Narodowy Bank Polski), in 2021 the average price per square meter of real estate in the capital was 1992 euros instead of 2,314 euros in 2008.
The annual growth in prices is: for the primary housing stock - up to 3%, for the secondary - 0.6%.
The Polish real estate market is distinguished by:
- higher prices in Warsaw and major cities of the country - Gdansk, Krakow, Wroclaw, Poznan. At the same time, real estate prices in Poland lag behind prices in Germany, France, Italy and other EU countries;
- constant growth of rental rates. The high demand for rented apartments leads to their rise in price. The rental yield here is higher than in many EU countries and ranges from 6 to 8%;
- the popularity of home buying for subsequent long-term lease;
- market orientation towards local buyers. The share of foreign buyers in 2021 was only 1%;
- prevalence of citizens of Ukraine and Belarus among foreign buyers. They also make up the majority of foreign tenants of apartments in Poland.
Polish market analysts predict further growth in demand for rental housing.
Which rental option is more preferable?
The real estate market in Poland provides a wide range of housing for foreign citizens: houses (including luxury villas), apartments, rooms in hostels and communal apartments, hostels.
The choice of a rental object depends on a number of factors:
- the purpose of the visit to the country and the time of stay in it;
- financial capabilities of a potential tenant;
- his marital status;
- comfort of housing and others.
Let's consider the main rental options, their pros and cons.
Hostel
There are over 700 hostels in Poland. Most often, this option is used by travelers who have come to the country for several days, foreign workers or people who have arrived in search of work, but have not yet found permanent accommodation.
Pros:
- low cost - minimum prices start from PLN 18 per day per seat. Lower prices in rooms with a large number of people (5-12);
- providing comfortable living conditions. The price includes clean bed linen, use of a bathroom, shower, kitchen, refrigerator, washing machine, luggage room and lockers, Wi-Fi;
- "Buns" for an additional fee - for about 6 zlotys you can use a towel, TV, hairdryer, iron, get coffee and sugar, and by paying another 10 zlotys - breakfast;
- step-by-step accessibility of transport communications, food markets;
- the ability to live as long as you need - from one night to several months. The hostel can also be moved in with the whole family.
Disadvantages:
- lack of privacy - from 5 to 12 people live in a limited space. As a rule, the people living in the hostel do not know each other, they may be citizens of different countries, have different views on politics and religion from yours;
- not always good ventilation;
- strict adherence to the order and rules of conduct (lights out at 22.00, ban on drinking alcoholic beverages), for violation of which they can be evicted from the hostel. This approach guarantees the peace and safety of the residents. All upcoming changes in the schedule must be notified in advance to the administrator on duty.
Hotel
A more expensive alternative to hostel accommodation is hotels and inns.
When an employee settles in a hotel, all issues are decided by the employer. When checking into a hotel on your own, you should take into account the degree of its remoteness from the city center: cheaper accommodation may be covered by the cost of public transport - for example, in Krakow, an hour-long bus ride will cost 5 zlotys.
Pros:
- high level of comfort;
- the presence of a private space;
- independence from routine;
- the hotel address can be used to open a bank account, receive correspondence;
- at the reception you can always get the necessary information, seek advice, make a photocopy, print a document from a USB flash drive, change money.
Minuses:
- high cost - prices for a hotel room start from 70 zlotys per day;
- lack of home comfort.
Hostel
Almost all public and private universities in Poland provide their students with places in hostels.
Pros:
- payment for a seat is stable and does not imply any additional payments;
- usually two or three students live in one room;
- quite acceptable conditions for life and study. The rooms are equipped with the necessary furniture, there is Wi-Fi, and laundry services are provided. However, living conditions may differ markedly: some corridor-type hostels have a common kitchen, showers and bathrooms, while block-type hostels have a kitchen, shower and a bathroom for two rooms.
Minuses:
- rather high prices, especially in the capital and large cities;
- remoteness of hostels from the city center;
- "Joys" of student life: festivities, noise at night, interruptions in the Internet.
Therefore, the preferred option for many students is a joint apartment rental.
By the way, some large enterprises also provide hostels for their employees.
Room
In Poland, such a rental option as sharing a room is quite common, especially for students and students. The owners of the apartment often lease a spare room / several rooms for a long time and live in the same apartment with the tenants, sharing the kitchen, toilet, bathroom and corridor like a communal apartment.
Sometimes one or several rooms are rented to different tenants, then we are talking about renting a place in the room.
Pros:
- the opportunity to save money (especially if you rent a room with a friend). The average monthly rent for a room together with utility bills in small towns ranges from 300 to 600 zlotys, in large cities (Warsaw, Krakow) - 500-700 zlotys. In the center of Warsaw, such a room can cost PLN 900-1000 and more;
- comfortable living conditions.
Minuses:
- living together in the same apartment with the owners or co-tenants;
- the need to adhere to certain rules of behavior (silence after 22 hours, a ban on guests' visits, and others).
Apartment
The choice of rented apartments (do wynajmu) is very diverse. For singles who are constantly busy at work and need only a place to rest and sleep, the so-called cavalier apartments are perfect.
Interesting fact. The name "cavalier" appeared in the 19th century in Austria-Hungary, more precisely, in Lvov. It meant not the place where the married ladies brought their secret gentlemen, but the room in which the servants lived, that is, small rooms without a kitchen and a bathroom.
Today, cavaliers are small rooms (from 20 to 40 sq.m) with a kitchen and a small bathroom. Their main advantage is saving money when paying for rent (on average, from 900 to 1500 zlotys, depending on the city and region) and utilities.
When choosing a home, a lot will depend on the financial capabilities of the tenant, since the best apartments are more expensive.Average rates in the country for renting one-room apartments start from 1200, two-room - from 2000, three-room - from 2500 zlotys.
In the provinces, prices are below average. Moreover, the apartment owners may even offer a discount when they make sure that the client has a good income, a family and is not going to "abandon" the owner of the home.
House
Renting a house for one or two owners (bliżniak) costs from 3000 zlotys and more. You can rent a house in the mountains, for example, in the Zakopane region, from 5500 zlotys and more.
As a rule, it is more profitable to rent a house in quiet areas of the city or outside the city, in the green zone. There are many advantages to such a dwelling:
- detached house (no problems with neighbors);
- the presence of a personal plot and proximity to nature (especially if the family has children);
- lack of an administrative rank (czynsz administracyjny) - a compulsory maintenance payment, which is in apartment buildings.
There are also many disadvantages:
- in addition to the rent, it is necessary to pay for utilities: heating, garbage disposal, water, electricity and others, the amount of which can be 50% of the rent;
- The tenant also has additional troubles: mowing the lawn, fighting rodents and weeds (otherwise they will be fined) and others, and it does not matter whether you live in the house or not;
- additional costs of time and money are associated with the need to get adults to work, children to school or kindergarten by car or other means of transport.
Where and how best to look for housing in Poland
There are many ways to find housing in Poland. Sometimes the employer can take care of this issue, sometimes friends or relatives living in Poland. However, in most cases, you have to rely on your own strength. In this case, there are only two ways: to look for housing in Poland on your own or to contact intermediaries.
It is quite possible to find a suitable option on your own, but this will take patience and time.
Proficiency in Polish at least at the initial level will be a big plus - this will help you better navigate the real estate market, allow you to communicate with homeowners and discuss all the details with them.
We are looking for housing on our own using newspapers and the Internet
In Poland, there are specialized sites that allow you to search for rental housing on your own. Alternatively, you can use social media or advertisements that are published in print media.
Local newspapers
Searching for housing by advertisements in newspapers (Lokalna, Gazeta wyborcza, Mieszkaniec, etc.), as well as by advertisements on boards in churches and shops, is available only to those who already live in Poland and speak Polish.
Some Polish newspapers have their own internet portals for free classifieds, for example the newspaper Anonce, which makes it possible to work with them remotely.
On the portal "Anonce" there is a map of Poland, on which you need to select the desired voivodeship, after which you should go to the section "Real estate" (Nieruchomości).
In the "Real Estate" section, you must select a category: rented room, apartment (for an apartment, you must specify the number of rooms) or house.
When choosing, you should pay attention to the date the ad was posted - this will determine its relevance.
You must be familiar with certain terminology that will help you more clearly understand the situation:
- od właściciela - from the owner;
- bez pośredników - without intermediaries;
- bez agencji - without an agency;
- Wszystkie - everything;
- Prywatne - announcement from the owners;
- Agencje - agencies.
Social network
The popularity of social networks in search of housing in Poland is growing. Several dozen closed and open groups have been created on Facebook alone:
- Mieszkaj dobre Warszawo
- Nieruchomości po znajomości
- Warszawa wynajmę mieszkanie / pokój, szukam mieszkania / współlokatora
Similar groups have also been created on VKontakte and other networks. Members of such groups can help with translation from Polish.
Specialized sites
The first rule for a successful search is to search on Polish-language sites, since Russian or Ukrainian-language resources do not give a complete picture of the proposals. In addition, the prices on such sites are 1.5-2 times higher than those that can be found on Polish portals.
The most popular Polish sites are:
- on gumtree.pl, the search for housing should start with the section "Nieruchomości", in which you should indicate the category (pokoje do wynajęcia or mieszkania i domy do wynajęcia);
- The site provides for the possibility of using filters (by price, number of rooms, property owner, loyalty to animals);
- olx.pl contains a large number of advertisements for renting real estate in all voivodeships and cities in Poland. The interface is accessible, it is possible to use filters.
Among the minuses - the lack of the ability to rent a room and somewhat inflated prices;
- dom.gratka.pl - the site is dominated by ads from real estate agencies. You can use filters for different indicators, search for housing by the map (indicating the walking distance to shops, public transport stops);
- otodom.pl. The only difference between this site and the previous ones is that housing of the highest price categories is more widely represented;
- on wspollokator.pl you can not only find co-tenants or options for sharing an apartment / room, but also get a lot of practical information about living together in a rented apartment.
- domimporta.pl makes it possible to reach the most popular ad sites.
The list of such sites is extensive. They contain a wide variety of information: a description of the premises, photos, prices, a map, who is the owner and much more. Feedback from the owner of real estate or a real estate company is mandatory, since most apartments in large cities are rented out precisely through agencies.
Renting a home directly from its owner has its advantages:
- there is no need to pay a commission for the services of intermediaries;
- at a personal meeting with the landlord, you can find some kind of compromise, negotiate special conditions.
Minuses:
- difficulties in communication (most often knowledge of the Polish language is required);
- the need to do everything independently: to negotiate, prepare the text of the agreement, arrange meetings and personally attend them.
During negotiations, the owner of the property can book an apartment for the client. In this case, you will need to pay a deposit (up to 30% of the rental rate) - it should be paid through Rau Pal in PLN or transferred in EUR / USD to the owner's foreign currency account.
It is important to remember that the owner of the apartment or house does not provide any documentary evidence of the reservation of housing, therefore, in order to open a visa, it will be necessary to make a hotel reservation.
After the owner of the property receives the money, the client will receive a notification about the reservation by e-mail. The rest of the money will be paid to them after the conclusion of the lease agreement.
Finding housing through real estate agencies and private intermediaries
For those who do not speak Polish well, do not have free time, or are not yet in Poland, there is an opportunity to rent an apartment with the help of real estate companies, real estate agencies or private intermediaries (however, we are talking only about renting apartments and houses).
Most of the real estate firms have employees who speak Russian, Ukrainian and English.
Among the advantages of working with intermediaries, it should be noted that the realtor can offer options that have not yet been posted on the site. However, intermediary services for the search for real estate are paid additionally, and the services of a private intermediary can be both more expensive and cheaper than the help of agencies. In this case, all the hassle of finding housing, drawing up a contract, solving current issues will fall on the shoulders of intermediaries.
Many agencies and realtors have their own social media pages or websites through which they can be contacted. For example, Limba Nieruchovości, Bracia Strzelczyk, Maxon Nieruchovości.
Young families (but no small children) or families with grown-up children, single men and women without bad habits, who have prestigious jobs, and businessmen have good chances of finding housing.
How to properly arrange rental housing in Poland
After the housing has been found and inspected, preliminary negotiations have been carried out and agreement has been reached on the terms of rent and payment of both parties, you can proceed directly to the paperwork.
What documents will be needed to conclude a contract
The landlord must provide proof of ownership of the real estate - title deeds.
A lease agreement for a specified period (Umowa na czas oznaczony) is drawn up in duplicate and signed by both parties. It is not required to certify such an agreement with a notary.
The contract contains the personal data of the contracting parties: the series and number of the foreign citizen's passport, the data of the identity card and the PESEL number for Polish citizens, the date and place of its conclusion are indicated.
The contract must contain the following main points: the area and condition of the apartment, the amount of rent, methods of payment, the terms of the contract, the rights and obligations of the parties and other details (for example, that the landlord, after the delivery of the apartment, is not allowed to enter the apartment without the permission of the tenant).
The tenant must maintain order and good technical condition of the apartment (Article 681 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 05/18/196), timely pay rent and utilities.
The agreement must necessarily contain a clause stating that any changes to it must be made exclusively in writing.
One month before the expiration date, the tenant must notify the landlord in writing of their intention to vacate the property.
A list of property (household appliances, furniture) with a description of its condition, as well as a protocol of acceptance / transfer of an apartment is attached to the agreement on a separate sheet.
In accordance with Polish law, if the state of things is not described, then they are by definition “in good condition and fit for their intended use”, and the owner has the right to demand compensation for any damage, even if it was already there at the time of the conclusion of the contract.
Such an agreement can be terminated only in a few cases:
- failure of vital communications (water supply, heating, gas, electricity, sewerage);
- failure to pay rent for several months. It should be borne in mind that Polish law prohibits the eviction (even in the event of non-payment of several months) a pregnant tenant);
- constant violations of public order by the tenant.
In all other cases, the contract can only be terminated by agreement of the parties. At the end of the lease term, tenants must return the object in a condition that is not worse in terms of order and cleanliness than it was at the time of the conclusion of the contract. According to art. 675 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Poland, the lessee is not responsible for the wear and tear of those things that were used correctly and for their intended purpose.
If the term of the agreement has expired and the owner has agreed to the tenant's further residence, then the agreement will be officially considered extended for an indefinite period (art. 674 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Poland). In this case, the owner must be notified of the planned departure from the apartment at least 3 months before leaving (art. 688 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Poland).
What to do after the conclusion of the contract
After the contract is concluded and the keys to the housing have been received, you can celebrate a housewarming and live in peace.
All foreign citizens who have a permit (decision) from the voivode for temporary or permanent stay in Poland should apply for a temporary residence permit - Meldunek czasowy.
To do this, you must report to the local Urząd Gminy (in Warsaw - to Urząd Dzielnicy) within 4 days from the moment you arrive at your new place of residence. The address can be obtained from the lessor or on the website of the Polish Post by the postal code or by the map of the portalGMINY.PL here. The basis for registration will be a rental agreement.
What is the cost of renting a home in Poland and what does it depend on
The cost of renting residential real estate in Poland depends on several factors, the main of which are the area of housing and its location (voivodeship and city).
Average rental rates in the country for apartments in residential areas are:
- for one-room apartments - from PLN 1,500 per month;
- for two-room apartments - from PLN 1,800 per month;
- for three-room apartments - from PLN 2,100 per month.
The highest rental prices for real estate in Warsaw and other large cities, in the provinces are cheaper. For example, a two-room apartment ranging from 38 to 60 sq. m will cost:
- in Warsaw - 2,560 zlotys per month;
- in Wroclaw - in 1990 PLN
- in Katowice - PLN 1,730;
- in Lublin - PLN 1,580;
- in Lodz - PLN 1,350;
- in Poznan - PLN 1480.
In the Lubusz Voivodeship, a two-room apartment with an area of 30 to 50 sq. m will cost 1100 zlotys per month, and in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship or in Bydgoszcz, you will need to pay 1,250 zlotys for the same apartment.
Traditionally high prices in the ancient capital of Poland - the city of Krakow. A two-room apartment here will cost 1780 zlotys.
The cost of renting an apartment in the Baltic Sea near Gdynia starts from PLN 1,700, in Gdansk - from PLN 1,790.
The most affordable prices for residential real estate over the past few years have continued to persist in provincial towns - for example, in Sulęcin, a two-room apartment will cost 1,230 zlotys, and in eastern Poland: for example, in Bialystok - 1,330 zlotys.
What is included in the rent
It should be noted that in addition to the agreed amount for the rental of housing, additional costs are incurred directly by the landlord. Therefore, so that a conflict situation does not arise and there are no financial problems, you should understand what exactly is included in the rent, and what you will have to pay extra for.
Rental housing fees include:
- directly the rental rate (paid to the owner on time);
- administrative chinsh (czynsz) - payments for an apartment that the owner of real estate is obliged to pay: land tax, payment for security, cleaning, building repairs and others. Chinsha sizes differ depending on the voivodeship, city and even district in the same city;
- payment of utilities (water, sewage, gas, electricity).
Additional costs can also include the payment for the services of real estate agencies / realtors and the design of a meldunka. The services of an intermediary are from 50 to 100% of the rent for one month (excluding VAT - 22%), registration costs 17 zlotys.
Payment methods and frequency
All issues related to the methods and frequency of payment are indicated, according to the Civil Code of the Republic of Poland, in the lease agreement. Payment may or may not include utilities, payable daily, once a week, once a month, once every three months.
As a rule, payment is made through a bank or in cash, if it is stipulated in the contract.
If the terms of payment are not stipulated in the agreement or the agreement has not been concluded, then payments are made:
- in one payment for the entire lease term, if it does not exceed a month;
- monthly until the 10th - when renting for more than a month or for an indefinite period.
The rental price may vary in one direction or another, but this requires the conclusion of an additional agreement to the contract.
Renting an apartment in Poland: what to look for
Before signing an apartment rental agreement, you should pay attention to several aspects:
- it is best to conclude long-term lease agreements in Poland in early spring. At this time, the high winter tourist season has already ended, and the summer has not yet arrived, so there is no influx of tourists and vacationers. Rental prices at this time are 10-15% lower. In September-October and January-February, the influx of students and house prices rise;
- it is advisable to search in advance for information about the proposed area of residence (ask in the search engine "Niebezpieczne dzielnice" and the name of the city or region), ask friends.This is necessary in order to avoid the need to change housing and pay a fine for terminating the contract due to a disadvantaged area;
- ask if the chinsh is included in the total rent or if it should be paid separately;
- in the contract, it is imperative to indicate everyone who will live in the apartment, as well as to fix the possibility of temporary registration at this address;
- ask the owner of the apartment in detail about what is included in utility costs, how the payment for water, gas, Internet and other services is made.
Renting real estate in Poland: what interests you most often
Foreign citizens who are going to live and rent real estate in Poland are often faced with questions to which they have to look for answers. Among them:
Kaucja zwrotna - what is it
Caucia is a deposit that will be required to be paid when renting a home. It is equal to the monthly rent (when renting a luxury apartment, in the presence of expensive equipment, its size can be increased, but it cannot exceed the amount of the annual rent). The causation is returned to the tenant after the termination of the contract in full, if the apartment is in order, and partially, if it is required to compensate for the damage. If the damage caused is large, then the causation is not returned.
Is it possible to rent an apartment without drawing up a contract
In case of short-term renting of an apartment, the contract may not be drawn up.
Is it possible for a foreign tourist to rent an apartment for one or two days
Foreign tourists can rent an apartment during their stay in the city without any restrictions. For example, a one-day rental of a one-room apartment in Krakow can cost from PLN 45 and more.
Is it necessary to design a meldun
If a foreign citizen is not going to apply for a residence permit in Poland, buy a car here, open a bank account, get a PESEL, arrange a child in a kindergarten, then he may well do without temporary registration. However, a number of administrative procedures require the obligatory presentation of a passport with a visa or a residence card, a rental agreement and confirmation of ice exposure.
Whether the landlord is required to have a frosting permit
The registration of a meldun does not provide a foreigner with any rights to real estate. Nevertheless, many Poles - apartment owners are reluctant to give their consent (it can only be given by the owner of the apartment) to register at the address of the rented apartment. However, it is possible to glaze over without the consent of the owner - to register a meldon, you just need to provide a lease agreement to the uzhond. But if the landlord was against this, and the tenant kept silent about it, the consequence will be eviction and non-return of the causation. Therefore, the issue of registration must be discussed with the landlord in advance.
Let's sum up
Rental housing in Poland continues to be affordable for foreign citizens. The most popular rent in 2021 is the rent of rooms and apartments. At the same time, the highest rental rates are in the capital, in large cities - Gdansk, Wroclaw, Krakow, in resort areas - in the mountains and the Baltic.
You can rent inexpensive residential real estate in Poland in provincial towns and eastern provinces. The most popular ways to find housing are on your own (through special sites) and with the help of agencies and real estate firms.
When renting a home, it is advisable to conclude a written lease agreement, which will secure, and in some cases may be needed by a foreign citizen (when obtaining a residence permit, opening a bank account).
