Housing

Logo Stuvo LUCA

For students of LUCA School of Arts & KU Leuven Faculty of Architecture.

Looking for a student room in Brussel, Gent, Leuven or Genk?

Start your search online, but be aware of fraudulent advertisements. Ask your local Stuvo (housing department) for more advice about your search and the local rental law. 

Warning: fraudulent advertisements!

When you are looking for student accommodation, beware of fraudulent advertisements on the internet. Fake landlords are renting out non-existent accommodation. Other imposters use stolen identities to rent out existing accommodation. They target international students in particular.

We certainly don’t want to scare you off but we want to advise you to be cautious.

  • Never pay a deposit before signing the contract and being 100% sure the accommodation exists and is for rent.
  • Always ask for the landlord’s personal information (name, surname, phone number and a photocopy of his/her ID).
  • Double-check the provided address on Google maps to see if it exists. 
  • Ask for an ‘interview’ via skype or whatsapp and a 360° view of the living unit. Watch out for the so-called landlord who uses all kinds of excuses not to make a video call.
  • If possible: read the reviews of other users. 
  • You will find that the rent for a ‘fake’ living unit is much lower in comparison with other similar rooms or apartments. Keep in mind that if an offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is…
  • Reread the rental agreement and look for mistakes in the English language.
  • Pay with a credit card, because then your payment is insured.
  • If you notice any suspicious advertisements or if you become a victim of a scam, please be sure to report this to the local police.
  • Ask some advice at Stuvo (housing department). 

The rental agreement

The rental agreement will specify certain things: the amount of the security deposit, the duration, the rental fee, notice period(s), obligations, rights, prohibitions, etc. A contract is binding, so once it has been signed there is no backing out of it.

  • Read it carefully. Keep in mind that whatever you sign is binding.
  • Pay attention to the conditions for termination.
  • Know what is (and what is not) included in the rent.
  • See to it that verbal promises are noted in the agreement.
  • Make a record of the digits on the energy meters (use of water, electricity, heating) at the start/end of your stay.

A Dutch, French and English model of a rental agreement can be viewed at Kotatgent or MyKot (Brussel). 

The deposit

Keep in mind that you might be required to pay a deposit (max. 2 months). The landlord can request you to open a joint bank account for the deposit, which will be returned to you upon departure if no damage has been ascertained to the room or its furniture. The deposit should never be considered as payment for the rent!

 

Domicile versus residence address

Domicile is the place that you consider as permanent living address while a residence address is only a temporary address. 

If you register your new address as your domicile address you will also have to comply with Belgian law, tax regulation etc. This is not a required step.

Although you have to register in the commune or city office to inform the Belgian city administration about your temporary living address (= residence address), your permanent address usually remains in your country of origin. Therefore you can also rent accommodation that doesn’t require a domicile.

Studenthousing in Brussel

Looking for a student room?

  • Stuvo LUCA Brussels is the operator of ArtUpkot, located 3 minutes from Campus Sint-Lukas and the Faculty of Architecture.
  • Update (04/09/2023): we have still rooms available!
2023-2024 1 Year contract (12 months) Semestercontract (only for exchange students)
UpComfort €476 + €75 (EGWI) €635 + €75 (EGWI)
UpComfort XL €491 + €75 (EGWI) €655 + €75 (EGWI)

In need of more information? 

Studenthousing in Gent 

Looking for a student room?

Finding a suitable and comfortable housing unit is strenuous and will take a lot of time and energy due to the shortage of student accommodation in Gent. 

We offer a small number of student accommodations together with UpKot for the incoming exchange students of LUCA School of Arts or KU Leuven Faculty of Architecture in Gent. 

Some advise in the search of a student room: 

  • Consult the database of Kotatgent. This database states with every advertisement whether the room meets fire safety and housing quality. 
  • On this moment it's very difficult to find a student room: If you can’t find a place to rent in Gent (postcode 9000), maybe you can try to extend the search area to 9050 Ledeberg/Gentbrugge, 9031 Drongen, 9030 Mariakerke/Wondelgem…Gent isn’t that big to travel around.
  • Or try as a last attempt to find a student room in a student city near Gent; for example Brugge, Kortrijk, Antwerpen, Brussel…. Have a look at the train tickets. Take a look at Kotwest: the official student room database of student cities in the west part of our country.
  • We strongly recommend to find accommodation before travelling to Gent. Regrettably, we can't offer backup plans for students who arrive without having secured accommodation. 

In need of more information? 

    Studenthousing in Leuven

    Studenthousing in Genk