From time to time there are fake housing offers. Especially international students are affected by ads for apartments that do not exist. Those offers are well-camouflaged and imitate normal rents and deposits, which makes it hard to identify whether an ad is fake or not. We advise international and ERASMUS students to contact us as the students' union or the University’s International Office before signing anything or even transferring money.

The idea of “Deine Couch für Erstis“ (“Your couch for first-semester students“) is to provide a place to sleep for first-semester students in order to make their flat-hunting easier and help them get started in Münster. It does not matter if it is a bed, couch or air mattress; be it for one night or for a few weeks, we are thankful for anything you can offer! If you can only provide space for a very short time please enter “0 €” for rent to support the thought of solidarity that this idea is based on. You can also specify if your guest should bring something (e.g. towel). 

You can post your advertisement here .

Please enter for Ttpe of accommodation “Deine Couch für Erstis”.

Enter the size of your room and enter „0 €” or a minimal fee for rent and additional charges.

Write something about you and the room or whatever you want your guest to know.

Here you can see the advertisements.

The project „Wohnen für Hilfe“ (“Accomodation for Help”) has been run successfully for many years now and offers an interesting housing opportunity: You help an elderly person with household chores or in the garden and in return you can live for a low rent or even for free. The hours you help each month depend on how many square meters your room has. The project coordinator helps students get in touch with elderly citizens and supports you during the process. Interested students can find further information here:  www.muenster.org/wohnen-fuer-hilfe

Within two weeks after your move to Münster you have to register with Bürgerbüro der Stadt Münster (Citizens Office of the City of Münster). People who register later than that have to pay a fine. At the Citizens Office you have to decide if you make Münster your primary or secondary residence. If Münster is your main place of residence, you should register it as primary residence. Especially considering that there is a fee for registering a secondary residence. This means that you have to pay 10% of your rent exclusive heating as tax if Münster is your secondary residence. There are a few exceptions where you do not have to pay. You can find more information here (only available in German).

At Bürgerbüro der Stadt Münster you can also register TVs and radios for GEZ or be made exempt from the licence fee. To do that, you have to prove that you do not have enough money to pay the fee. It is usually enough to hand in a certified copy of your BaföG application.

If you found accommodation on the free housing market and you have to pay for electricity and/or gas yourself, you can contact Stadtwerke Münster (public utilities company). You can call them (694-1234) or send them an e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and they will set everything up for you. In the city center, the Stadtwerke CityShop answers all your questions: Salzstraße 21, 48143 Münster, opening hours: Mon - Fri (9am - 7pm) and Sat (10am - 6pm).