As a newly arrived researcher in Sweden you will probably start by renting an apartment.
How to find housing in Umeå As a newly arrived researcher in Sweden you will probably start by renting an apartment.
It's a good idea to talk to your PI beforehand about the accommodation. You may get some valuable information regarding the potential options. You should especially check out the page Accommodation, but unfortunately the queue is long and you probably want to look for a subletting option elsewhere as well.
Landlords The biggest landlord in Umeå is the company Bostaden which is in part owned by the Umeå municipality. Bostaden has a queue system were a person with the longest queue time gets the first priority for an apartment that is available to rent.
You can also rent a parking spot for your car or a storage room in the basement. Since the queue is usually very long (average time for getting a flat may vary from 3 to 10 years depending on location of the flat), it's a good idea to register at Bostaden website, as soon as you get your first thought to move here.
It is reasonable to register at several housing companies for more options and availability. You can find a list of most popular housing companies and property owners here (websites are mostly in Swedish): Umea - finding apartments
As an "emergency option" you can also find something suitable at the biggest second-hand website in Sweden: Blocket
As soon as you found an apartment, you may also want to get a home insurance to minimize damage for your budget in case of a theft or home accident. Here you can find some basic information and a list of the five biggest insurance companies to consider: The newbie guide
Plenty information for newcomers can also be found here.
