We warned you about possible housing horrors Barcelona before here, and today we want to share some practical information about the rental contracts. Let’s go!

1. I don’t know how long I will stay, which contract should I ask for?

There are two types of rental contract:
1.Short term period or temporary basis
2.Long term period

The first one, which in Spanish is called contrato de alquiler por temporada, will do if you have more or less an idea how long you are going to stay in Barcelona. It allows you to determine the duration of your stay in the flat, so you can leave it on a specific date without prior notice. With this contract you can stay even for just two months, although we are sure that after a couple of days you are going to realise that a even a year is not enough for this beautiful city.
The second one, contrato de alquiler de vivienda, often requires a minimum rental period (usually 6 months or 1 year) and you will also be required to notify the owner 60 to 90 days before you decide to leave the flat. And who knows what can happen in 60 days!
Goguin is here to help you avoid this problems.

2. What is this fianza thing all about?

Most landlords require a certain sum of money in advance as a deposit (in Spanish it’s called fianza). It may equal a 2 months worth of rent and is used in case you decide to leave the apartment earlier or cover any property damages. If you stick to the agreements, it will be returned to you before the contract’s expiry date, or it will be valid as payment for the last months of rent. By the way, rent in Barcelona is paid monthly and not weekly like in some other European cities.

3. Should I rent the whole apartment, sublet the rooms and be the boss?
Are you staying in a hostel and already enjoying the nightlife? If so, you probable have made some friends. If you consider yourself a responsible person, why not get them together and rent a flat to build your own Spanish family.
What are the benefits? Firstly, It is good to know your flatmates beforehand to evaluate their level of craziness. You never know, maybe one day a quiet mate will decide to go naked to the window wearing a gnome mask screaming “buenos dias!” (true story, that actually happened). And second, you will pay less and split the utility bills.
Be careful though, if there is a free room you’ll have to look for another flatmate, otherwise the missing rent share will be taken out of your pocket, and we know it is not pleasant. Again, Goguin can help you to get in touch with other people in your area and look for a perfect roommate, or even the next tenant to take over the apartment when you decide to leave it!

4. Why not just rent a nice tourist flat?

Many beautiful big apartments in good areas turn out to be so just in the pictures. Scammers use them to grab your attention, charge the deposit and disappear with your money. Other flats rented for days or weeks are significantly more expensive: landlords need a special tourist license to rent those flats, and they usually charge double. Before making any kind of deal, look around and try to get the best price – in Barcelona almost everything is negotiable.

How can you avoid scams and overly expensive flats in Barcelona?
Go to www.goguin.com and start your search. Movers just like you are there already swapping their apartments, possessions and experiences. Log on to your next destination!