Becoming Swenglish in Umeå

The rental market in Umeå is a little complicated if you are not part of the University. You can of course choose to buy a property but this is becoming less common due to property tax being so high, family circumstances changing rapidly and so on. Therefore if moving to Umeå I would definitely suggest renting a property in the first instance so you can assess the housing trends for yourself, choose where to buy etc.

I myself rent an apartment and I am fortunate as my Swedish partner has sorted everything out for us but for those of you with less luck here is some information and some links that you might find useful to get you started.

AB Bostaden i UmeÃ¥ – T: 090-17 75 00   W:  www.bostaden.umea.se
This is as far as I can tell the largest rental company in Umeå and owns a lot of the housing complexes.  This is also who I rent from and my experience with them has been generally very positive.  The website also translates into English making it easier to navigate if you are unfamiliar with Swedish.

Akelius – T:090-77 33 13 W: www.akelius.se
National based company with some affordable apartments to rent in Umeå.

Balticgruppen Bostad AB – T:090-71 72 00  www.balticgruppen.se
Seem to cater mainly for students and housing for people in later life but also do other rentals.

Franklin Fastigheter AB - T: 0950-105 57 W: www.franklin.se
Lycksele based company who cover the Umeå area.

MOFAB AB – T: 090-70 24 90  W: www.mofab.se
With offices in Stockholm and Umeå this company seems to cater largely for City based properties.

HSB – T: 090-15 38 00 W: www.hsb.se
Again a large company with offices in the city who cater all over the region.

There are many other companies which you can search through etc but the above should at least give you a place to start.

How it worked for us (through Bostaden)

If you want to rent a property through Bostaden you tell them of your interest and your requirements and you are added to essentially a “waiting” list of sorts.  When you find a property you are interested in you formally express your interest by emailing them (You will receive log in details etc when you first register so this is all a lot easier than it sounds!)  Each property has a closing date for applicants as the housing market is so competitive in UmeÃ¥.  Once the closing date has passed all the applicants are assessed and put in order – the person at the top of the list is the person who registered the longest time ago – first come first served as most things in Sweden.  The person who is top of the list then gets a few days to decide if they actually want the apartment, if they decline the apartment then the person who is second in the list has a chance to take it etc until someone decides they want it.

In my experience you don’t actually get to see the apartment you are moving in to in the flesh until you actually move in, although I am sure if you talk to the landlord of the property this can be arranged.  You do however of course get to see a full floor plan, square meters, you know what building it is in and on what floor so you can do an exterior and location check before you sign up for anything.

Maintenance – You landlord has responsibility for the upkeep and repair of the apartment so if anything goes wrong you call them and they fix it.  Apartments are usually decorated throughout on a 6 or 7 year cycle but if you are lucky and the apartment is in a “tired” looking state when you move in you might get the place done out to your choices free of charge.  You should be notified in advance if the landlord will need access to your apartment so you can make arrangements for pets etc and in my experience they have been very quick at fixing any problems etc.  They are also responsible for maintaining the outside areas – be warned this can mean grass being cut at some very unsociable hours!

Moving out – When you move out from an apartment (this is important) you will be subjected to an inspection.  Anything that is not up to the inspectors standards will be charged to you personally – for example, marks on new wallpapers – you will be charged for the redecoration costs, if it is not deemed clean enough – you will be charged for the hiring of a professional cleaning firm (which could cost you up to 7000 sek) etc.  This is in essence the Swedish version of not getting your deposit back – but seeing as you don’t pay a deposit it is a more itemised way of doing things.  There are “non-professional” people who do apartment cleaning for a more discounted rate and I can pass on details if anyone requires the services.

Bills & Utilities - This will obviously vary depending on the rental company and apartment building etc but generally you will have water (both hot and cold) and heating costs included in your rent.  You will have to pay for electricity, internet, phone lines etc.  All of which you set up directly with the supply companies.  Your landlord might have preferred supplier deals with some companies so be sure to check that out.

Parking Spaces – Most apartments come with parking places that you can rent at an additional cost.  A lot of apartments come with guest parking – do not be tempted to use this as your car parking if you live in the building as the parking inspectors will look up the number plate, see where you live and ticket you…trust me I know from personal experience!  Bicycles can be parked for free of course outside apartments, some even come with sheds to make it a little safer.

Storage – Apartments often come with storage spaces in the basement, whether this is tiny rooms or cages etc depends on the apartments but each apartment usually has one area where you can store whatever you want.  I find it comes in handy for the Christmas tree and winter/summer tyres!  Be sure to padlock and label your storage so it doesn’t a) get robbed and b) get cleared out thinking people have moved and left things (it can happen if you don’t have labels!)

Facilities – This of course varies depending on your apartment building however there should at least be washing facilities if there is no machine in your apartment.  There will also be a small building which houses bins for your apartment block which includes recycling facilities and should be emptied regularly.  You might also find some or all of the following – Table tennis room, sauna, hobby room, large washing machine (for rugs, duvets and similar), extra storage, etc.

Buying - If you do decide to buy a property then you should seek advice from elsewhere as it is not something I have any experience of I am afraid.  As far as I can tell often the properties are often Leasehold and there is a rental charge to pay even if you own the property which I think is similar to Council Tax so covers the bin collection etc.

I hope this information should be a help guide to get you started.  If you have any other questions or queries please don’t hesitate to contact me and I will try to find an answer for you.  In the meantime, happy hunting!