Accommodation Arrangements: finding a place to live in Russia -
student dormitories, homestays, renting a flat, roommates,
hostels...
Most student
live in dormitories provided by universities, and this is the
least expensive option. Other options include home stay (great
for even more immersion and a look at Russian life!) or renting
an apartment alone or with roommates. The program organizers can
generally assist with the first two options, but apartment
rentals is more specific. We would recommend staying first in
the dormitory while looking for an apartment and also checking
out flatmates.ru if you are interested in finding a roommate. Be
sure to inform your program organizers of your housing plans as
it can sometimes be an issue with your visa registration (which
is tied to your residence).
Student Dormitories This is a
very basic kind of accommodation and it allows to save a lot of
money and provides an easy way to meet a lot of young people.
The quality of accommodation really depends on the university.
In Moscow (especially MGU) and St. Petersburg dormitories are
quite good and can be compared to the ones in American
universities (though in Russia they are much less expensive). In
smaller towns dorms may be quite run-down, so it's better to
check before what you will be getting with your university.
Check also if there are any problems with hot water.
If you're staying for 3-4 months it is just too much headache
and expense to run around for an apartment, so getting a dorm is
the best option (unless you find a shared apartment).
If you're planning to stay longer than a year, then you can
still get a dorm room for a month or two and directly when you
arrive to Russia start looking for an apartment or a roommate to
share an apartment with.
The price is usually about $100 per month for quite a small room
with catering facilities and showers outside.
Homestay
Allows you to get the feel of what life in Russia is like, but
may be slightly expensive for what there is, because most
homestay owners (in Moscow and St. Petersburg especially) are
used to charging $10-$15 per night for a room. You may be
interested in living there for a week or two, but after that
period you may also start feeling like being pissed off by your
neighbors, because you will be tired of their presence and want
some younger people around (because most homestays are run by
people in their 40s).
So, if you want to get all the good stuff that homestay can
have, but not to feel as if you're visiting your parents, check
out the next option:
Finding Roommates
Until recently, there was not a single roommate matching service
in Russia and the few people who lived together sharing a flat
would find each other at work or at school. So it wasn't a very
popular way of accommodation for foreigners, because you can't
get to know someone before you actually get to Russia, and once
you find someone, it's time to go back home... :-(
However, nowadays everything is different — we created the first
Russian roommate matching site - FlatMates.Ru which allows you
to search for roommates in any Russian city. At the moment I'm
writing this (Feb 2004) there are already about 250 members -
one month after it was launched - and there are a lot of
Russians who are eager to rent an apartment with someone else.
So, if you're up to it, just go to flatmates.ru/eng/ to browse
profiles.
There's also some information on apartment rental costs in major
Russian cities as well as useful advice on renting an apartment
and checking out your future flatmate.
Renting an Apartment Alone
This is the only option that will allow you complete
privacy. Renting an apartment in Russia is not as cheap as most
people think. For example, it's simply impossible to rent a
one-room apartment in Moscow suburbs (the cheapest it could be!)
for less than $300 US per month. Plus, you'll have to pay a
service fee to the real-estate agent who finds it for you
(usually, 70%-100% of one-month rent). And if you try to find it
by yourself, most likely it will be some sort of scam, so don't
even try.
If you want a decent western-style apartment in a good
comfortable area in Moscow, it will cost about $1000 per month.
If you agree for a compromise (that is, something not completely
awful and not necessarily central), then you may be able to
settle for $500 US per month, if you know how to bargain.
Each student
should carry 1000 $ with him/her for food and other pocket
expences per year.the students are advised to take medical
insurance which may cost about 100 $ per year.
