Accommodation options in France
Finding accommodation in France is not always easy. Before you arrive the first thing to do is to determine your budget and looking for types of housing available in the city that you are going to.The biggest advantage in France is that students get housing benefits even if you are a international student. Student may find difficulties in finding accommodation, particularly in university cities and especially in Paris. And when it comes to international students, without your presence it would be more difficult for them because students can not physically see the apartment or sign a lease. When my visa got approved, I started looking for places. Though it took me a month but with the help of my college's International department I found a place before coming to France. You can also check with your institute they will help, certainly. Moreover, there are lot of websites were you can find cheap options, you can find the website information at the end. Check everything before coming to France. Do not pay anything online unless you are applying for housing through your college or company.
Available options:-
1. You can apply for "Foyers" Private homes which is suitable for people with tight budget. You have to pay little or nothing but in exchange you must provide certain services such as helping with children, doing shopping or helping them in housework. Beware of abuse, sign a contract with your host to establish the rules at the time of your arrival.
You can live in Private hostels. It will cost you between 350€-600€ rent per month. You can click on the link for more information https://www.hostelworld.com/hostels/Paris
2. You can apply for housing in CROUS. Try to contact your college they will help you to get a room in CROUS as some universities have agreements with them and rooms are reserved for international students. If not, then you can apply directly through online website. The rent varies from 300€-400€ per month for a single room to 450€-500€ for a studio.
Go to the website http://www.crous-paris.fr/ and check all the information before applying. It is on the basis of first come first serve.
3. You can apply in various student residencies. But they are very costly. A studio will cost you around 600€-900€ depending on the place where you live. Also, other expenses will be added such as electricity, internet, water and gas etc. To know the name of Student residences simply type on google "Student Residencies in Paris" or 'Student Residencies in Rennes" you will get a lot of options.
Apart from this, you can search on leboncoin.fr, seloger.com, pap.fr and studapart.com. You can search for Colocation/Sharing accommodation, as it has increasingly spread throughout France, particularly amongst international students. However you will find cheap studio's as well. So you can pick any of them.
Hello, I am Manisha Bhatia from Delhi. I am holding a degree in MSc in Global Business Management from Rennes School of Business. Currently, working as a Business Developer Intern with Centre Zenith.
Edited By: Sourav Choudhury