How to apply for a rental apartment

VAV rents two types of rental housing: state-subsidised rental housing (formerly known as Ara rental housing) and non-subsidised rental housing. For state-subsidised housing we check income and asset limits, for others this information is not checked. Find out more about our rental housing and income and asset limits [link]. We check the credit history of all applicants aged 18 and over before making an offer.

1. Fill in the rental application

A good housing application includes your preferences for the area and type of housing.
Tip: You can improve your chances of getting a rental property by adding several options to your application.

Apply for an apartment

2. Wait to be contacted

Once your rental application has been sent, you will receive a notification that your application has been received. When you have sent your application, you will be notified that your application has been accepted and you should then wait to hear from us. At VAV, access to rental housing is not based on a waiting list, but on the need for housing. We are therefore unable to determine the average waiting time for a rental apartment. The majority of our apartments are state-subsidised rental apartments, i.e. those for which we follow the Arra (now Varke) guidelines for tenant selection.

3. Report changes

If your situation changes, you can edit your housing application. Remember to renew your application, which is valid for four months from the date of submission. If you forget to renew your application but you still need a rental property, you can always submit a new application to the VAV. If you are no longer in need of accommodation, please inform the VAV Customer Service.

Before making an offer, we will check your civil registration details. The address in your application and in your civil register must be the same. Otherwise, we will consider that your housing need is no longer valid. So remember to update your application if your address information changes.

4. Attachments to your housing application

When applying for state-subsidised rental housing (formerly known as Ara rental housing), we need information about your income and assets. You can attach the necessary annexes to your application at any stage before you receive an offer of accommodation. These will be requested at the latest if you receive an offer of accommodation from us. This is so that we can check that the information in your application is correct.

Attachments may vary from applicant to applicant, for example:

Pre-completed tax return for all persons aged 18 or over moving into the property.
For all persons moving into your new home who are 18 years old or older, you can find a pre-filled tax return on MyTax. If your tax return shows that you have assets such as securities or real estate, please provide a statement of their current value. For more detailed instructions, see “Statement of assets and liabilities”.

If you need help using MyTax, please contact the Tax Administration.

Statement of income
A statement of income can be a pay slip, a statement from the income register, a pension or benefit decision such as unemployment or home care allowance or, for self-employed persons, the latest confirmed tax decision.

Statement of assets and liabilities
If you have received an offer of accommodation in a state-subsidised apartment (formerly known as an Ara rental apartment), your income and assets will be taken into account in the selection of the tenant.

Assets include owner-occupied housing, a summer cottage, a plot of land, shares or funds. Information on assets can be found on the pre-completed tax return. When calculating assets, we also take into account related debts, such as the outstanding mortgage. A statement of the current balance of these debts must be provided.