Living and working in Brussels: Renting a home/flat/appartment

The choice about accommodation in Belgium is simple enough: rent or buy a home. The difficulty for expatriates, however, is financial commitment, and in many cases time constraints. If, however, you're doing contract work, or unsure of your expenditure and your next moves, renting is the obvious move, and definitely the most common.

For expatriates, these early days of settling in are the most difficult, and it's the time when you're spending the most money. It's important to get yourself up and running as efficiently as possible.

Think about where you choose to live. Taking a bit of time to check out locations can be very useful, and save you a lot of money. You need to take into account travel and hours of work, and your personal and family needs have obvious bearings on cost factors.

Stick within your budget levels. When trying to get established in another country, money is the most persistent obstacle.

Renting in Belgium is slightly different from other countries:

• The basic lease is 3 years, the standard lease is 9 years.
• A bank guarantee is a standard requirement of most leases. The guarantee must be in a tangible form, such as cash, stocks, a similar personal security given by a third party, or a bank guarantee. This amount, not more than two months rent value, can be in the form of a so called blocked account, which is a normal, interest earning savings account, requiring signature of both tenant and landlord. Cash is not considered the best option.
• Leases can be varied, depending on need, and the variation of the lease will normally be under the standard conditions.
• Rent is usually fixed, for the term of the lease.
• If you choose to end a lease prematurely, penalties are incurred under the terms of the lease, being 3 months rent if you terminate in the first year, 2 in the second, and 1 in the third year. After 4 years as a tenant, there is no penalty.
• A 9 year lease may be broken with 3 months notice.
• An inventory is made prior to signing the lease. This is effectively a statement of the condition of the home. This inventory is used as a basis of assessment of the premises upon the termination of the lease.

NOTE: This is an example only. Take care to ensure that you're fully aware of all conditions, obligations and terms of your lease. The conditions above are standard, but each lease is an individual agreement, and can vary.