Renting a furnished room to an Erasmus student in Göttingen: semester dates, Kaution, Wohnungsgeberbestätigung, the rent cap and where to find your tenant.
Renting a furnished room to an Erasmus student in Göttingen means hosting a tenant with a predictable calendar (winter semester from October, summer semester from April), for a short stay, in a town where the Studentenwerk houses only a minority of students and demand outstrips supply at every semester start. In return, German law sets a few precise rules: a deposit capped at three months' rent, a landlord's confirmation to hand over within two weeks, and a rent cap on new leases. This guide walks through them from a private landlord's point of view, with official sources.
Why an Erasmus student is a good tenant in Göttingen
Göttingen is a university town in the strict sense: the Georg-August University and its institutes shape housing demand. Three traits make the Erasmus audience attractive for a landlord:
- Dates known in advance. The winter semester runs from 1 October to 31 March, the summer semester from 1 April to 30 September; lectures for winter semester 2026/2027 start on 26 October 2026, those of summer semester 2027 on 12 April 2027 (university semester dates). You know when the room frees up and when to re-let it.
- A need for a turnkey furnished room. A student arriving from abroad for one or two semesters does not buy a bed or plates. They look for exactly what a private landlord offers: an equipped room, ready on the first evening.
- A structural shortage. The Studentenwerk halls run on waiting lists and cover only part of the student body; the rest rent on the private market, WGs first (Studierendenwerk Göttingen, private housing market). We describe that market from the student's side in student housing in Göttingen: Studentenwerk or private.
What German law asks of you
The rules below come from the German Civil Code (BGB) and the Federal Registration Act (BMG). They apply to a private individual renting out a room, furnished or not.
| To plan for | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit (Kaution) | At most three months' rent excluding utilities; the tenant may pay it in three equal monthly instalments | § 551 BGB |
| Landlord's confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung) | To hand to the tenant for their address registration, which must be done within two weeks of moving in | § 17 and § 19 BMG |
| Penalty if the confirmation is missing or false | Administrative fine of up to €1,000 | § 54 BMG |
| Rent on a new lease | Göttingen is a designated tight market: the rent of a new lease may not exceed the local reference rent by more than 10%, with exceptions | § 556d BGB; Lower Saxony tenant protection ordinance |
| Utilities statement | If you bill utilities at cost, the annual statement must reach the tenant within twelve months of the end of the period | § 556 BGB |
Two practical points:
- The Wohnungsgeberbestätigung is not optional. Without it, your tenant cannot complete their Anmeldung, so cannot easily open a bank account or enrol properly. We explain what the student expects in Wohnungsgeberbestätigung: why your landlord has to give it to you. Prepare it for the day you hand over the keys: name and address of the person providing the housing (and of the owner if different), address of the dwelling, move-in date, names of the people moving in.
- Göttingen has a Mietspiegel. The city has published a rent index since 1 May 2023, updated on 1 May 2025, with an online calculator (Stadt Göttingen, Mietspiegel). It is your starting point for a rent that complies with the cap. The exceptions to the rent cap (new build, comprehensive modernisation, a previous rent that was already higher) are technical: when in doubt, have your case checked by a landlords' association (Haus & Grund) or a lawyer.
A room in your own home or a self-contained flat: two very different regimes
The BGB draws a sharp line between two situations, and your room for manoeuvre depends on it.
You rent a furnished room in the home you live in yourself. This is the case covered by § 549 paragraph 2 no. 2 BGB. Several tenant protections then do not apply: neither the rent cap (§§ 556d to 556g), nor the duty to justify a termination (§ 573), nor the regulated fixed-term lease (§ 575). Notice is short for both sides: by the 15th of a month at the latest, effective at the end of that same month (§ 573c paragraph 3 BGB). It is the most flexible regime for a one-semester stay, and it applies as long as the room is not let to a family for permanent use.
You rent a self-contained studio or flat, or a room in a dwelling you do not live in. The general law of residential tenancies applies in full: rent cap, termination only for a legitimate reason, and a fixed term only in the cases the law allows. The tenant's notice is about three months (notice by the third working day of a month, effective at the end of the month after next, § 573c paragraph 1 BGB). To align the contract with a semester without weakening it, read our guide tenancy agreement for a student in Germany: Zeitmietvertrag, Kündigungsverzicht, Kaution.
And if you are a tenant yourself and want to sublet a room during a stay abroad or because a room is free, the framework is different again: subletting your room to a student in Germany.
Setting the rent and utilities without surprises
In Germany an advert distinguishes the Kaltmiete (rent excluding utilities) from the Warmmiete (utilities included). For a furnished room let for a semester, the most readable formula for a foreign student is a flat-rate Warmmiete: one all-in amount, heating, electricity and internet included, which § 556 BGB allows as a lump sum (Pauschale). You avoid having to send an annual statement after the tenant has left.
Three habits:
- Start from the Mietspiegel, then add what the furniture and services justify, keeping the rent-cap ceiling in mind where it applies.
- Write everything into the contract: amount, what the flat rate covers, payment date, amount and terms of the Kaution.
- Never ask for money before the viewing or before signing. Students are targeted by fake adverts; a serious landlord stands out through transparency. Our anti-scam advice lists the warning signs, useful too for spotting a fake application.
To understand what your future tenant already knows about the Kaution and Nebenkosten, read the student-side version: Kaution and Nebenkosten in Germany.
Where to find these tenants
The university itself relays private offers. Göttingen International (Welcome Centre) keeps a database of rooms and flats for international students and researchers: the landlord fills in a form, only furnished or partly furnished places are accepted, and the university takes no responsibility for the contract (offer a private room; Wohnraum anbieten). It is a serious channel, but one that depends on the needs the service has recorded.
General portals and WG groups work, but your room competes there with hundreds of adverts, and sorting the applications is entirely down to you. Studroof's logic is different: being seen by the Erasmus students who are arriving in Göttingen specifically, on fixed dates, and who are looking for a furnished room for one or two semesters.
Got a free room in Göttingen? List it for free on Studroof and reach Erasmus students arriving on fixed dates. You sign and get paid directly — 0% commission, Studroof never handles the money. Studroof is neither an agency nor a property manager: it is a listings platform that puts you in touch, nothing more. Find all our guides in the landlord hub.
FAQ — Renting to an Erasmus student in Göttingen
What deposit can I ask a student for in Germany? At most three months' rent excluding utilities, and the tenant is entitled to pay it in three equal monthly instalments (§ 551 BGB). A higher amount cannot be demanded.
Do I have to provide a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung? Yes. The person providing the housing must confirm the move-in so the tenant can register their address within two weeks (§ 19 BMG). Failing to provide it, or providing a false one, carries a fine of up to €1,000 (§ 54 BMG).
Does the rent cap (Mietpreisbremse) apply in Göttingen? Yes, the city is listed in Lower Saxony's tenant protection ordinance, whose validity has been extended to 31 December 2029: on a new lease, the rent may not exceed the reference rent by more than 10%, with exceptions (§ 556d BGB). It does not apply to a furnished room in the home you live in yourself (§ 549 BGB).
Can I rent for a single semester? Yes. For a furnished room in your own home, the short notice of § 573c paragraph 3 BGB is enough. For a self-contained dwelling, a fixed-term lease is only valid for the reasons in § 575 BGB; the usual alternative is an open-ended lease with a mutual waiver of termination. Details in our guide on the student tenancy agreement in Germany.
Which language should the contract be in? Draft the contract in German, the language a German judge will read it in, and attach a courtesy English translation if you can so the student understands what they are signing. The University of Göttingen makes templates available to the landlords it relays.
This article is for information and does not replace official sources or legal or tax advice. Studroof is a passive listings platform, not an estate agency or a property manager. Tenancy rules and rent caps change: always check your situation on gesetze-im-internet.de and with the Stadt Göttingen. Last updated: September 2026.