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There are three main options for housing in Paris: living in a homestay, living with other students in a dorm, and living independently in an apartment. Many times your particular program will arrange your housing situation for you, but often they give you a choice. There are obviously pluses and minuses to each option, so its best to do extensive research before you decide.
Generally organized by the college program you enroll in, homestays vary in accommodations and reciprocity. Not all families consider your arrival an “adoption”; some place very few restrictions on their students, granting them separate entrance and kitchen facilities. Others, however, expect hosted students to arrive home by curfew, call if they are going to miss dinner, and wear slippers or shoes at all times. You should consider the relationship you would like to cultivate with your host family before filling out the self-evaluation sheet most programs send to applicants. Your questionnaire will inquire about whether you play the piano—important for music majors, actually—and about your habits, and prospective host families fill out a similar form, indicating personality traits they would prefer a student to possess. Honesty in your responses is crucial to facilitate a good match. If you note you fear living in poverty because you secretly want your own bedroom and figure rich people are more likely to have spare rooms, be aware you could end up spending five months with a count and countess who still subscribe to strict social castes (see Count on a Good Time). In particular, highlight vegetarian and dietary concerns. Your program may not notify host families about student food allergies; avoid the EpiPen fiasco by indicating problems on your form. Secondary concerns include proximity to Paris’s center; if you like to stay out late, for example, you would do better with an accommodation close to the Bastille or Latin Quarter (see Discover). Not only do arrondissements farther from the city center require longer commutes, having to switch several trains to arrive home could turn ugly should you miss the last train from the terminus. Think carefully about what you want from the experience.
Familles D’Accueil. Many students choose a homestay because they want to practice their French outside the classroom or—for better or worse—exchange cultural values. Forced to listen to the radio and watch the news in another language, you will become more proficient. Although no “typical” French family exists, a disproportionate number of old, divorced women host foreign students. Many may have grown-up children or grandchildren, and several families will have hosted previous students. Depending on the arrangement your program has provided, your families may have to provide breakfast and dinner several nights a week. Hating to waste food, French families expect you to arrive on time and eat what they serve you; on the plus side, you have someone who will cook exquisite food for you. If you get sick, an insider’s advice can prove helpful when trying to navigate a foreign health-care system. Established French families may also own homes much bigger or grander than any apartment the typical college student—i.e. broke—could afford.
Make A Good Impression. Once assigned to a homestay, contacting them via email or phone before you leave may lessen your arrival’s awkwardness. Yes, expect awkwardness; learning to laugh with your host family will soften linguistic stumbles and inevitably save your ego. Consider emailing your host family the time and date of your arrival; they may even offer to pick you up, saving you money and sweat. Everyone loves free stuff, even French people; as a thank-you offering, think about bringing your host family a typically American gift or an atypical local favorite. And, as the first few weeks roll by, remember that bonding takes time. Rome wasn’t built in a day; you can’t expect to destroy the French’s close-minded reputation in a semester.
There are many reasons to consider living independently besides the potential that you’ll meet a French hottie and want to bring them home. Living independently is a great opportunity to truly create your own Parisian experience—to determine your own schedule, social scene, and lifestyle. It’s important to remember the operative word: independence. There are a couple of obvious perks that come with this: you are not tied to a host family’s demands and plans, you can feel like a true Parisian resident as opposed to a “visitor” in someone else’s house, and you can ensure that you won’t end up in an house with a lonely cat lady or a dorm with a younger cat fan. (Or, you can be that cat man or lady without bothering anyone else about it.) However, living alone also brings with it great responsibility that you may not have otherwise dealt with as a student before, such as cleaning the apartment, paying bills on-time (insurance, electricity, etc.), cooking and shopping for yourself, dealing with nosy or otherwise odd neighbors, and most importantly, living by yourself. Coming back to an empty apartment can feel relaxing and liberating, but it can also be isolating, boring, and therefore lonely. For all of these reasons, it is probably best to have at least a solid handle on French before you decide to live independently—as you’ll get fewer opportunities to speak the language (or will have to make a much greater effort to do so), and because dealing with the plumber is just less awkward when you can say more than “Mon trou ne marche pas.” (“My hole doesn’t work.”)
Camarades De Chambre. In order to offset some of the disadvantages that come with living alone, many students decide to live with one or many roommates, either people from their home country or program, other international students, or even French students. Though this can make the experience less lonely and can relieve some of the burdens (someone else can take out the trash for once!), there are downsides as well—namely, the cat lady and the fact that it might deter you from branching out on your own (especially if you have English-speaking roommates.) While living with a roommate ( “co-location” in French) used to be relatively rare, it is quickly becoming a popular trend, and there are now many websites dedicated to finding roommates, most of which also sponsor monthly meetings for roommate-seekers (a great way to meet people even if you’re not looking for a roomie!). Some helpful sites include: www.appartager.fr, and www.kel-koloc.fr, www.colocation.fr, www.easycoloc.com. Another newer and therefore less user-friendly site is www.recherche-colocation.com/paris.html. Of course, once you find a roommate—or before you do—you’ll need to find an actual place to stay, which is another story altogether.
How To Find An Apartment. Finding the perfect apartment in Paris depends on a number of things: neighborhood or arrondissement, size and style of apartment, and price. Thankfully, many websites allow you to search by specifying these criteria (for a list of helpful websites, see Essentials: Long-Term Accommodations). Due to Paris’s natural dynamism, both long- and short-term apartments are always opening up. That being said, it is probably a good idea to begin the apartment search no less than one to two months before your planned arrival in Paris. Renting an apartment usually costs between €600 and €2000 per month; fortunately for you, the longer the stay, the lower the rate of pay (only more reason to prolong your Parisian experience as long as possible!). In addition to rent, you’ll also most likely be asked to put down a security deposit (usually the amount of about two months rent) and to pay for extra utilities (such as Wi-Fi, heat, and electricity). When searching for an apartment through an online agency, you will also be charged an agency fee, which usually ranges from 30-75% one month’s rent, depending on the length of stay. If you are lucky, your agency will also set you up with an insurer, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your own research to find the best rate (expect to pay about €125 per 6-month period).
Online Resources. Just remember: while searching online is much more convenient, it can also be less reliable: never send payment in advance without a solid guarantee (a contract) and always check to make sure the address actually exists (ideally, never settle on an apartment without seeing pictures). The French Yellow Pages (Pages Jaunes) sponsors a website called Photos de Villes (http://photos.pagesjaunes.fr), which allows you to see any pictures of any building in Paris just by typing in the address. Finally, make sure to keep track of all transactions and correspondences; while most contracts have to be signed in French, any reputable agency will allow you to see an English version as well. If you handle your rental with a private owner, it may be more of a hassle but you will avoid some of these fees. Some helpful websites include:
How To Choose An Apartment. When deciding what type of apartment is right for you, there are a couple things you should consider. First off, what type of neighborhood do you want to live in? Do you want to live among the hip alternative crowd of the Bastille, the fabulously glamorous Marais, historical and intellectual St-Michel, or the more residential but adorable Butte-Aux-Cailles? As a general rule, the closer you get to the city center, the more you’ll be paying. For a more in-depth take on the Paris neighborhoods, see Discover. Another thing to consider is the location of the apartment within the arrondissement : how far is it from a metro or a park? Is it on a smaller, more quiet street or busy boulevard? Is it close to a grocery store, laundromat (if necessary), ATM, and boulangerie? Within the building, is the apartment on the first floor? Or is it a fifth-floor walk-up? (Literally a pain in the butt, but great for the quads and glutes!) Does it have a view of adorable Parisian roofs or a loud, growling, and potentially alive ventilator? The majority of apartments available for one person are studios, which consist of one “large” (usually around 20 sq. m) room with a bed (sometimes also the couch) and a kitchen “area” (this could just be a microwave and countertop), and smaller bathroom. While these can get a bit cramped, they are usually the perfect size for a student—and are oh-so-Parisian. Other options include lofts, duplexes, and standard one- and two-bedrooms, but these are usually more expensive and better suited for multiple residents. Finally, beware the eccentric (read: crazy) Parisian landlord; though he or she can at first seem endearing, the relationship can quickly escalate to a passive-aggressive Cold War.
Dorms And Foyers. Many students view dorm living as a happy medium between the homestay and apartment life, as well as a not-as-abrupt transition from university life in America. Dorms allow for more freedom in terms of schedule and lifestyle, but also provide the structure of community life. They are also a great way to meet other students. One tip is to apply as early as possible: student housing in Paris is a hot commodity, especially the weeks before the beginning of the semester or year. Also, you will want to take some of the same considerations as you would with apartment hunting —neighborhood, surroundings, amenities, etc. Foyers are located all over Paris and come in all shapes and sizes (from industrial and diverse to historical and unisex), so you should not feel limited by your decision to live in a dorm.
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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