The local institutions involved are making continuous efforts to provide newly arriving international students in Groningen with the necessary information concerning the student housing market. Yet, many of them are still not completely aware of the state of the rental market in Groningen, and even less of the Dutch regulation of the rental market in general. Information is primarily focused on how to find a house and not on the legal position of tenants in the Netherlands, let alone on how to ensure your legal position or how to stand up for your rights. Through student organizations, De Huurdokters aims to inform international students in Groningen about their rights and help them to stand up for them. One of them was Tiphaine, a PhD student from France and a member of G.S.B.V. Groene Uilen - Moestasj.

What was it like for you to arrive in Groningen as an international student in a new city? I knew nobody before arriving in Groningen. I found my accommodation just 2 weeks before starting my new job. Only later I got to know people from work and sport.

How did you manage to find yourself a place to live? I did not know any free website that could help me finding an accommodation. I finally found a studio thanks to a private agency for which I had to pay quite a lot: 1 month’s rent. I know several free websites that help students for finding housing in France, but of course here, because I knew nobody, I did not know this useful information and had to find them all by myself. I think for international students knowing nothing about Netherlands, it is really hard to find reliable information.

Did you know the rental market in The Netherlands was regulated? I really did not know that the rental market in The Netherlands was regulated. I only found out when Huurdokters explained it to me. I think it is very good there is regulation, but it should be clearer for International students. It is important to know our rights.
Can you tell us how you experienced the Huurdokters’ procedure? I heard about Huurdokters from the student basketball club in Groningen. I then made an appointment with them and everything has been explained to me very clear. The process was easy for me because I had to take care of nothing; I only had to say my agreement before each step of the procedure. The procedure helped me a lot because I got a new fair rent of around €150 less per month.

Did you have any doubts or fears when you started the procedure? My only fear was about what my landlord would think. I was worried they could kick me out of the studio to get a new student and keep the same unfair rent. Huurdokters reassured me and they were right, nothing happened because landlords are not allowed to do that.
Did you discuss the procedure with friends? I discussed the procedure with some of my friends and with my neighbor as well! My neighbor really liked it and she also did a procedure to get a new fair rent, using De Huurdokters.
Do you think it’d good/helpful/useful that sports clubs can assist with other things to help their (international) members apart from sports? It would be definitively very useful for international members to be helped and get advice from sports clubs.
Do you have an advice for other internationals coming to Groningen? Do not be afraid to start a procedure against your landlords! A lot of people can be and they should not because they are in their rights!
Is there anything else you want to say? Thank you very much for your help! Thanks to you I save a lot of money per month that I can use for other things!

In many cases, international students end up paying way more than they should for their room or apartment. Although the awareness of facebook scammers, shady mediation agencies and illegal fees has increased among international students, the difficulties and despairs of finding a space to live still causes them to settle for situations or practices below legal standards. This is all very understandable since your most important task as a newcomer is finding a roof over your head, even if the conditions are not ideal. However, even after you signed your contract and settled down, you can still stand up for your rights. Unduly fees can be claimed back and rental prices can be corrected, in many cases even retroactively. Do you have any questions about your rental price or other rights as a tenant? Feel free to contact us at info@huurdokters.nl or have a look at our website www.huurdokters.nl.