Many German Students go for stay-abroad-semester themselves or do a work experience in other cities or other countries. They offer their room for rent during this limited period of time. This concept is called “Zwischenmiete” (interim rental). Provided that beginning- and end date fit with your plans, this “Zwischenmiete” can be a very good option for you. You have fewer competitors for this flat, because the first semesters prefer to have an unlimited accommodation and you can usually use all of you landlord’s furniture. Maybe you can even negotiate to rent his bicycle for the period of your stay. On the website wg-gesucht.de you can choose “befristet” in the drop down menu “Mietart” to show only interim offers.

If you are searching for an empty flat or for a small apartment for your own (which is also possible on wg-gesucht.de) your contact person is more likely to be some landlord or estate agent. You will notice a professionally published offer, because there is no description about flat life or about the other habitants. If the entire offer is more formal, obviously so should be your first message to them. Now it is time to write “Sehr geehrte Frau Müller” and use “Sie” (always with a capital letter). Once again I encourage you to ask German Students for help. In Germany we are very direct and very straightforward. If you do not know anyone yet, it is totally alright to ask unknown students in the study room to read over your text and correct some mistakes. I can guarantee you that 98% of them are very happy to help. There is no need to give a damn about the remaining 2%.