Accommodation for Haaga-Helia exchange students in Helsinki is provided in student apartments owned by HOAS - the foundation for student housing in the Helsinki area. Haaga-Helia has an agreement with HOAS for apartments in the Pasila, City Centre (Kamppi) and Kannelmäki districts of the city.
Students in Porvoo are accommodated in a student apartment building in a suburb of the town. If you are going to study at Haaga-Helia Porvoo Campus, please look at the Porvoo information page to find out more details. Please note that Haaga-Helia arranges accommodation ONLY for exchange students.
Where the HOAS apartments in Helsinki are: 
- Pasila - Junailijankuja 5
- City Centre (Kamppi) - Pohjoinen Rautatiekatu 29
- Kannelmäki - Klaneettitie/Kitarakuja
- Kivikko - Linnoituksentie 10
- Viikki - Maakaari
How the apartments are allocated
Your accommodation application will be handled by Haaga-Helia International Services once your application to study in Haaga-Helia is received. The details will then be forwarded to HOAS who will allocate you a room in one of the student apartments and contact you directly before you arrive. It is therefore very important you give the correct contact details when you apply to Haaga-Helia, including a working e-mail address. If you don't need accommodation you should let the Haaga-Helia International Services know about it.
All accommodation is allocated on a first come, first served basis. There is no guarantee that you can stay in the same apartment with your friends and there is no guarantee that you can stay in the place where you want to stay. If you do have a preference, mark it on your application but do not be disappointed if you don't get what you want.
What you will have in the apartment
All apartments have a kitchen with storage space for each room, common storage space, refrigerator, oven and table with chairs/bench. Usually there is also a microwave. Apartments also have a bathroom with toilet, shower, sink and mirror. In larger apartments there is a separate shower room and two toilets as well as a common living room.
In each bedroom there is a bed with a mattress, a desk, chair, shelf and a wardrobe. In some rooms there is also an armchair. You need to get your own sheets, pillow and a blanket. If you don't want to bring these with you, you can buy them inexpensively from a hypermarket such as Prisma or Citymarket or from a household discount store such as Tarjoustalo. There are also two IKEA department stores in the Helsinki metropolitan area.
In some of the apartments there is no kitchen equipment (e.g. plates, knifes, forks, pans etc.). ESN Helga organizes a small flee market during the orientation week if the previous students have left something to sell and also a trip to IKEA. This helps you to buy everything you need for the kitchen in low costs.
The Rent
At HOAS the rent is charged monthly and includes electricity, water and heating. Do not pay your rent late or you will be charged a collection fee plus interest. You can pay the rent each month by Finnish bank transfer or all at once in advance from your home country. HOAS does not accept cash payments.
You will get information about the price of the rent from the International Services or directly from HOAS when you have been allocated your apartment. In general, the rent of a room in a HOAS apartment is lower than the market average. Rented accommodation at reasonable prices in Helsinki is in high demand so if you are planning to arrange your own accommodation you should note that it will most likely cost more and may be difficult to find.
Internet, Telephones and Television
All HOAS rooms come with a fixed internet connection included in the rent. If you want to use this service, make sure your computer has a network card. You will get more information about the internet service from HOAS.
For mobile phones, ESN Helga provides free Pre-Paid SIM cards from our partner DNA. You can use it for both calling and mobile internet.
Finnish television programmes are shown in their original language with subtitles. There are many English, American, Swedish, German and French programmes shown on Finnish television. Each room contains a television point. There are around 12 reet to view Digital tv channels including e.g. YLE TV1, YLE TV2, MTV, Nelonen (Channel 4), YLE FEM & SubTV. Free Cable Channels: Sveriges Television, Deutsche Welle, BBC World, MTV Nordic, TV5 Europe, Eesti TV. There are also other channels available for a charge, one of the cable television companies is Welho.
NOTE. The TV licence is collected in Finland as part of your inclome tax, so unless you work, you wil not have to pay a TV licence.
Laundry and Sauna
There are washing machines located in the laundry room of the HOAS buildings. The use of the washing machine is usually charged by means of electronic cash, you will need to get an Avant electronic card from a Finnish bank or the building maintenance company when you arrive. If you have a Finnish mobile phone it is also possible to pay for the laundry by using the phone and the cost is then approximately 1,30€ per wash. You need to book a washing machine time in advance, using the time reserving forms in the laundry room. The average wash takes 40 - 50 minutes.
There are also saunas located in each building: usually one for men and one for women. Each week, in some buildings twice a week, there is a free sauna time for residents (usually 3 or 4 hours). You can also rent your own sauna time (one hour a week) for a small fee that will be added to your rent.
Other housing options in Helsinki
· Facebook group Apartments for students in Helsinki Metropolitan area
· Forenom Hostel has special offers for university students renting a room for the whole semester. For more info contact them directly at varaukset@forenom.com. In order to get the discount, mention clearly that you are an exchange student in Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences.
· Forenom Hostel Helsinki Kutomotie
· Forenom Hostel Helsinki Pitäjänmäki
· Anttikorppi Student Apartments
· Lumo (minimum 6 month tenancy agreement)
· Oikotie (only in Finnish)
· Airbnb.com
· Vuokra-asunnot Helsinki (Most are in Finnish, but Google translate helps)
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