Housing types

What types of housing are there?
You can live in a residential group or you can live independently.

Living in a residential group
You will rent a private bedroom in a house where you will share the facilities like a bathroom and/or kitchen and/or living with the other residents. You will live in a residential group or student house. Rooms in residential groups are meant for one person only and are not furnished. These rooms are most commonly available; also, it is cheaper to rent a room in a group then to rent a studio or apartment just for yourself. When you live in a student house or residential group, you share the kitchen, toilet and bathroom with your fellow residents. You do have your own bedroom where you can sit, sleep and study. You can find residential groups in single-family homes, but also in apartment buildings, with one apartment being divided into several rooms. It is possible that an entire floor of a flat has been converted for one group. The number of housemates differs per house/group. Larger groups have several showers, toilets and/or bathrooms. If you have decided that you want to live in a residential group, you can read here how you can find a room in a group. 

How can I find a room in a residential group?
You can respond to a vacant room once you have registered. The landlord determines how the rooms are allocated. A common method of allocating rooms is hospiteren. If you want to rent a particular room, you are required to send a letter to the current residents with your motivation. Based on the letters that they receive, they will invite some of the candidates. If you are invited, you can meet the current residents and they can get to know you. And you will probably be able to see the room yourself. For you and the current residents a good match with the group is important. The group will choose the candidate who suits their group best. This candidate will receive a lease agreement from the landlord. If you want to rent a room, we strongly advise you to read the tips and tricks for hospiteren. A lot of non-Dutch students only send an e-mail with the following text: I would like to rent the room. If this is the only text you send, the chances that you will be invited to meet the group are close to zero. Therefore, we ask you please to read the text about hospiteren. Another allocation method, which is not used a lot, is that the landlord allocates you a room in a residential group. Are you looking for a room in a residential group? Register for free at Roomspot.nl. 

Are you are looking for a room in a residential group in Enschede? At the website of the municipality, you can check if the room is a legal rental. 

Living independently
If you live independently, you have an apartment, studio or single-family house to yourself. You have your own entrance that you can lock and you do not need to share facilities such as a kitchen, bathroom and/or toilet with others. It is more expensive to live independently than it is to live in a residential group, but if you live independently, you can apply for rent benefit. If you have decided that you want to live independently, you can read here how you can find independent living space.

How can I find an independent living space?
If you want to rent from a housing corporation or a student housing provider, they will often ask you to register on the corporation’s or provider’s website. Sometimes there is a fee attached, often it is free. If you are looking for accommodation in Enschede, Hengelo or on the campus of the University of Twente, you can register for free at Roomspot.nl! At Roomspot.nl, SJHT and De Veste offer housing. The landlord determines the method of allocation. There are also other landlords in Enschede and Hengelo, check out the overview.