Oh A Hunting We Will Go!

Did anyone else sing this song in school as a child? It goes like this, Oh, a-hunting we will go, A-hunting we will go; We'll catch a little fox and put him in a box, and then we'll let him go! Well I'm not out to catch a little fox, but I am about to catch a little apartment so perhaps you'd like to come along for this great adventure?

If you watch House Hunters International on HGTV perhaps this will be your kind of thing. Caitlin Holcomb from NICE gave me this great idea to pretend I'm on House Hunters and take you with me to Germany to help me find my next apartment. Are you in? Okay so obviously I'm officially on the search for a new apartment. We're not buying anything, just renting for now, but since I heard that I can take photos when I go to look at apartments then well this blog is about to get a little more exciting for us both! How about I document my progress? It will be fun, at least I hope, for you to see what the average German apartment looks like and maybe even a learning experience for you if you've never lived here before. It will definitely be a learning experience for me.

This process is new for me as the current place we're in belonged to my husband's grandmother and we took it after she passed away. This time, it's a different playing field. And let me tell you, the field is highly competitive here! So far, the apartments I've looked at have been "open house" style except for one, and during this open house the landlord or realtor sizes everyone up and then you say whether or not you want to rent it and they say that they'll think about everyone, pick the best candidate, and call that person to offer the flat to them. Scary! One must also (usually) pay 3 months rent as a deposit, 2-3 months rent as a realtor's finding fee, and then we have to install a kitchen and hire mover's to get us from here to there... so this wild ride will begin as soon as this weekend as I have two places to view -- one on Saturday and the other on Sunday. I promise that if they allow me, I'll photograph them no matter how ugly (ha ha) so you can catch a glimpse and we can dish. Sound good? I honestly need to do this for not only my records to document everything but because I think you all will be a great resource for me and also just plain fun to discuss things with. By the way, the photos shown are of one apartment I found online that is too small for us and I don't like the kitchen, but it gives you an idea of what is available here. It's pretty standard to find white with tiled kitchen and bath and then for the main rooms and hall, parquet or laminate. In this case, hardwood that appears to be original. My goal is parquet or hardwood. I really, really dislike laminate though it's pretty and durable, it's very cold in the winter. Okay enough. Let the apartment hunt begin. Eep! xo, Holly

Comments

so exciting!! this will be inspiring and very educational! ..i remember amanda from Bakeitpretty.com did a post in this style when she and her family moved within the states and it was so interesting and fun (she's so sweet). can't wait to see your pics and hear about the process! ...you need the "ding dong" sound effect once you make your pick haha ;)
happy hunting!!
Victoria Klein said…
Yay! I love this idea :) I do wonder a lot about what apartments are like in Europe, so this will be very educational ... and fun. :D
MGMart said…
Wow,sound so exciting Holly! I love the idea for letting us know how the apartment hunting will go and I do love this apartment, look so airy and bright!
Good luck and looking forward for the next post :)
xo
Marianna
Anonymous said…
Good luck I lived in Stuttgart for two years and it took 6 months to find a place. There is so much to see in Germany I will check in to "vote" for the best spot. Cute idea BTW Tchuss
Unknown said…
oh fun, can't wait to follow along on your hunt.
Brigitte said…
I am so excited for this series! Good luck!
Ann Marie said…
looking forward to it! how fun. thanks as always for sharing your adventures with all of us.
Vanessa said…
I love House Hunters International. Can't wait to see the apartments...
Sarah said…
My great grandmother was from Germany, so this is very interesting to me. Can't wait to see!!
I love the french doors in the one above.
Sugar said…
Oh wow!! We fell in love with Berlin while watching a marathon of house hunters international in Berlin. The places looked amazing!! Although, I still don't get the whole bring your own kitchen thing. Can't wait to hear more. And best of luck!!!
kay* said…
i absolutely LOVE house hunters international so i will definitely be following along! how exciting!
Mandi Johnson said…
How exciting! I can't believe how crazy the apartment hunt is there! I would totally be stressing. And definitely blogging about it. :) Looking forward to the updates! (and the education, for that matter!)
ritaC said…
OoOoH, yes please! :D
stefanie said…
I love German apartments - especially the Altbau ones (if you know what I mean). :) Good luck with the hunt!!!!
Sugar said…
Oh, I love it. I watched the HH International marathon all weekend. I loved all the Berlin places. I still don't get the bring your own kitchen thing? But very excited for you. Good luck.
Laura said…
I DO love you sharing this with us - I may 'copy' your idea too. I'll be moving out (unfortunately) at the end of March... Love the photos!
Very exciting!
I love House Hunters (and HH International) so this will be a real treat. Thanks for taking us along for the ride and good luck in your search,

{ Lindsey }
greatfullday.blogspot.com
Katherine said…
This is a great idea! I love the floors in the photos here.

I'm shocked at the amount of money you have to pay though. Here in Scotland we pay around a month's rent (sometimes a little bit more) as a deposit, and a month up front, but if you find a flat through an agency it's usually only about £100 fee (but they will find ways of getting more money out of you, it's nowhere near 2-3 month's rent).

Looking forward to seeing how you get on.
Michele said…
yay

yes holly sang that song quite a lot as I recall - perfect song for you're apt hunt. Just seeing those images the white walls, windows and those incredible floors - can't wait to see what you end up with - I've heard about how beautiful Germany is :D
laura said…
Good luck with your search Holly! The open house with the landlord/agent cherry picking the tenant sounds like apartment hunting in Ireland at the height of our property boom. If you were lucky enough to turn up to a viewing with only a handful of candidates, it was a race to hand over your deposit cheque, rent and references!
I will be in Vienna next week looking at apartments, I think I'll post photos of the ones that we see like you are doing! It's a bit easier for us though, an agent is handling the search for us and will arrange everything if we decide to take one of the apartments that we see.
Anonymous said…
To be fair, it's not like that everywhere in Germany. I only had to pay one month's rent deposit to my landlord and there wasn't an agent involved, so no additional fees. And he was desperately looking for renters, so I didn't really have competition. It really depends where you live. Hannover, Hamburg, Berlin and Munich are notorious for being expensive and having lots of competition among renters. As for the "bring your own kitchen" thing - some apartments do come with kitchens, but you'd have to be really lucky to find a pretty one or be allowed to change it.
jodi said…
oh, how fun! i *love* house hunters. can hardly wait to see the places you come across!

sounds like quite the daunting process though. about as bad as renting here in NYC. good luck!!
my spatula said…
love this. house hunting and gawking is a lifelong hobby for me. love european apts...the floors, doors and knobs are always lovely. best of luck!!
So fun! I can't wait to go on your house hunt with you! I love this idea!
xo
Melis
I love the show House Hunters International too, although I no longer get that tv channel. I remember singing the song-poor fox. I'm quite against fox hunting! Look forward to seeing your apartment tours.
Anonymous said…
wait - where is the apartment shown above? i guess its next to mine, but i didnt know its for rent.
How wonderful! I can now get a double dose of House Hunters via TV and web. Fabulous idea, I will make sure to tag along for this one. Much LUCK!
A Little Diddy said…
Very clever. Love it.
Morgan said…
Great idea! I look forward to following your 'hunt'!
Patricia said…
Wow, I thought France was bad because it's standard to give 2 months as a deposit and pay one month fee to the realtor. Coming from Montreal we refused to shell out for the realtor's fee cause we never would have done that back home and found something online, but I think we got very lucky. Good luck with your search!
jja said…
Dear Holly you don't have to pay always for a provision, some landlords rent without agency, I found every single time great apartments without paying any provision. For those 3 Kaltmiete, you get your money back plus interest rate for the time living in there.

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