How I FINALLY got my apartment in Paris 🇫🇷

ig @damondominique
my french course: courses.damond...
Call me a track star y'all cuz I just hurdled over every French obstacle to finally get my apartment in Paris. YOU KNOW HOW LONG I'VE BEEN COMING BACK AND FORTH TO PARIS! Here's how Parisian real estate works, what I said on the phone to the agencies, the exact message I wrote to my landlord, and all the other bullsh*t you have to deal with like having a garant and other rules that don't need to be rules. It was so much fun.
18:05 How I would do it if I had to do it again
My €995 Paris Apartment Tour → • WHAT MY €995 PARIS APA...
How I FINALLY opened my French bank account → • How I FINALLY opened m...
🇫🇷 Sites I used
How to Rent an Apartment in Paris (For Most of Us) → farawayplaces....
Sites that everyone tells you to use, but that are pretty crappy overall:
Le Bon Coin → www.leboncoin.fr
PAP → www.pap.fr
AirBNB (do the month option and then contact the hosts to see if they'll sublet) → www.airbnb.com...
Sites that have beautiful apartments, but that will filter you to an agency, at which point they'll ask for five million unnecessary documents and you will have just wasted your time:
Se Loger → www.seloger.com
LouerAgile / LouerVite → www.loueragile.fr
SpotAHome → www.spotahome....
Flat Looker → www.flatlooker...
Paris Be a Part Of It → www.paris-be-a-...
Find a Place in Paris → findaplaceinpa...
FUSAC Classifieds → ads.fusac.fr/a...
Paris Attitude → www.parisattit...
Century 21
Guy Hoquet
English-speaking expat agencies that have beautiful, but very expensive apartments.
VINGT Paris → vingtparis.com/
Book a Flat → www.book-a-fla...
If you want to hire someone to help you, Jean Taquet→ www.jeantaquet...
American Church of Paris
🇫🇷Garants
Unkle (these guys understood my situation and worked with me until my landlord just took my friend Charline as my garant) → www.unkle.fr/en
My girl Charline → / charline_sha
#DamonDominique #Paris #Apartment

[@bestdressed]

can we all appreciate how every one of damon's vlogs is TV level quality? the editing, the cinematography, the color, the storytelling, the jokes.. a true youtube master

[@gabriellephillips9167]

Ashley hiiiii❤

[@femafull]

Definitely ❤️

[@alondra8222]

Yeah I love the cinnamon tography really nice 👌

[@ardenr3533]

@@alondra8222 ah yes the smell of warm cinnamon tography fresh out of the oven

[@moonlightmelody5527]

Yes! Very smooth 👏🏽👏🏽

[@wydja3429]

As a french girl, I cackled nervously through the whole freaking vidéo. Worry not, my dear, parisian people make us "country peasants" jump through the exact same hoops. Oh, so you want a 9m2 flat on the eighteenth floor with a pest infestation and mold on the ceiling ? That will be 900 euros and your left kidney. And you'd better have those 34 files we asked for, a crystal skull and a dragon egg. Au nom de la république : PARDON.

[@annasmith4559]

Wydja hahshshshs

[@Ju-lj5ff]

It's the same for Parisians ahaha and we call you guys "country peasants" with all our love

[@shinrasboy]

Crystal Skull and Dragon Egg I’m DEAD. It’s like this in most major cities.

[@ailina63]

That's fuckin exagerated! I was born outside Paris and have lived in Paris for the last ten years with some breaks in London. I've never experienced this so-called Parisian rudeness. People meet morons and then because these morons are Parisians, all of a sudden, all Parisians are morons. I've seen more rude people in Paris who were originally from outside Paris and who want to be more Parisians than Parisians. They know nothing about suburbs and when they are looking for an appartement they all want to live intra muros because they are afraid of banlieue when true Parisians (those with an average income) are all renting and buying properties in the suburbs. I'm fucking tired of all the criticism towards Parisian people. 99% of the time , all the criticism is targeted at Parisians from non-Parisians who are so insecure. It makes me very angry because on top of being so disrespectful , it gives such a bad image of non-Parisian people.

[@KazuohAquilegia]

@@ailina63 MERCI DE DIRE A VOIX HAUTE CE QUE TOUT LES PARISIENS SAVENT !! J'ai déjà eu des ami-e-s qui venait d'ailleurs en France, et je n'ai JAMAIS réussi à leur expliquer qu'il fallait louer en banlieue parce que c'était moins cher, et parfois mieux en terme de qualité de vie. Épuisant uOu. Rien qu'à l'achat, le gap entre Paris intramuros et la banlieue est monstrueux. Des amis ont vendu un T5 dans le Sud de Paris à 450 000 euro, qui en aurait valu entre 1 300 000 et 1 500 000 s'il avait été dans Paris pur.

[@DChung-mf4om]

“Just take my money” French: No

[@damondominique]

😂IT'S REALLY LIKE THIS 😂

[@haleywang8941]

Seriously, one time after I was already being charged at ZARA in Paris, the employer asked for my ID which I forgot to bring after I had already paid. I only had my student ID and they literally refunded me right away...

[@clee2865]

D. Chung 😂

[@GildaDouglas]

Hahahahahahahahaha

[@armsock]

French: Nòn

[@annabaerg3776]

I'm 16 why am i watching this it's just stressing me out.

[@roospooscreate]

amyb 😂😂

[@luca77681]

I'm 15 and me too lmao

[@kmichalene]

Anna Baerg hahahaha Hilarious!

[@tehreem7563]

😂😂😂

[@reeses3466]

Im 16 and this is stressing me out too lol

[@torifisher7792]

I aspire to this "speak French on the phone" level of confidence. I get nervous making phone calls in English. Damn.

[@xTechnosaurusx]

I remember my first French phone call. I was studying the language in Quebec, Canada over the summer and was walking back to my dorm when a friend of mine ambushed me. His French was terrible and he needed to order a taxi to take him to the airport but was tight on time. He desperately begged me to speak to the guy on the phone before thrusting the phone in my hand. I was incredibly nervous but it actually went very smoothly! Even understood as the guy told me to tell my friend to be ready outside.

[@skiller280476]

You should...be nervous when making calls in english in Paris. We french are so freaking unforgiving when it comes to speaking french without a mistake. We can be very rude

[@LalaSmiles]

This is literally me. I can text Spanish conversations ALLLLL DAY but put me in front of someone I get nervous and don’t understand anything 🤣 and don’t remember how to talk

[@msergio0293]

You get used to it, I lived in France for a year and at first it was scary as fuck, specially with giving numbers or quantities, but later all was fine :)

[@stef75017]

Practice more and think less. Pratique plus et pense moins! ;)

[@OwlPhoenix]

I'm french, and meet a the requirements. BUT I'M BLACK ! And it's even harder for me. 🤦🏾‍♀️ I feel you

[@poppythurston1369]

YTaddict wesh c’est carrément raciste ton truc là

[@TheCinnamondemon]

​@@ytaddict3749 mais t'es con ou quoi toi ? t'as rencontré UNE locataire noire irrespectueuse et tu dis que c'est normal alors que les propriétaires défavorisent les noirs. t'es raciste, c'est tout

[@gabby2421_]

French people are still discrimination . Too much thinking that they are high or like a king. Hello? We are human duh! French people needs to change already! :(

[@TheEdMab]

YTaddict what a stupid comment. Pff.

[@TVChild3]

YTaddict ok... une locataire noire stupide = tous les locataires noirs posent problème. Heureusement que je ne juge pas toute l’humanité en lisant ton commentaire à toi.

[@victoriadupont7298]

Yo the dude at the beginning who asked to speak to someone who speak french is the epitome of french rudeness

[@leab84]

Victoria DuPont yeah we don’t claim him ;) that was so rude

[@pagethreemodel]

That was shadddeeee

[@derranlawston4052]

Victoria DuPont I don’t think he was rude, he just wanted someone who spoke french as their first language so he could be understood better. And he was Parisian, Paris doesn’t equal the rest of France

[@nopuedo3488]

@@derranlawston4052 you excluded him yet defended him. lol i think you think he was rude

[@derranlawston4052]

nopuedo I don’t, I’m just unbiased when looking at the information I was given

[@priapissimo]

I’m a Parisian man working for an acknowledged Parisian company with French garants and guess what? I ENCOUNTER THE F*CKING SAME ISSUES!

[@idislikemints]

What did they say to you? What was the reason for rejecting you??

[@chuck1804]

Lol... french landlords just wanna own property but don't actually want tenants haha.

[@damondominique]

C'EST PAS POSSIBLE MONSIEUR❗️

[@earasharma1729]

HA

[@kialeih5645]

Jeeez

[@monrh6615]

Take a shot everytime they tell you that. End up drunk in an hour

[@missmillienettleton]

I went through the exact same thing on my year abroad - it's so crazy how closed off the housing market is. Don't you want my money? And think about it - we are white and privileged! I can't imagine how much more difficult it would be for people of minorities. Liberté, égalité, fraternité my ass.

[@eva94cr]

Hhhahah only watched half of the video and I am already laughing remembering all that EXCRUCIATING PROCESS (i'm the one who uploaded on Instagram the illustration about you and your leg in the LOUÉ door). By the way, if you need to rent one next time I would recommend you the agency ParisAttitude! I rented two appartements in Montmartre there, and especially the first one was wonderful, the landlord the best I ever had, and the process was fast and effective! Even in the distance, I was doing it from Spain!

[@bloojkl4520]

As a French person, I just don't understand how anyone would want to live here, the people aren't very nice, I sometimes even hate myself lol

[@angelao3273]

bloo jkl45 😂😂😂

[@rsmith1820]

I lived in NYC all my life. My stay in Paris for 2 wks was like Disney. The same rental restrictions apply (for the most part), they want income to 60x the rent, you can get stuck with neighborhoods who complain if they hear you walk across the floor in slippers. I've been apt hunting in Brooklyn where the landlord told me that I HAD TO LAY MY OWN FLOOR! I moved to another state & had to leave my (practically) new refrigerator & stove. They probably Raised the rent because the appliances were in place. Have you ever been on the phone with a rude New Yorker in ANY type of business??? GIVE ME PARIS

[@writerforlifeify]

How does one make sense of ext-pat Francophiles living happily in Paris among miserable French natives? Have you seen the movie 'Before Sunset'? Céline tells Jesse that Parisians are not happy, a truth to which I can attest by simply scanning the faces of my fellow Métro commuters. Maybe the secret to 'le bon vivant' (the good living) in Paris is to come to it from elsewhere....

[@rsmith1820]

@@writerforlifeify I think you are right. The grass is always greener, etc., etc., but if I must endure angry faces - let it be somewhere that I can chose to find SOME beauty. This is not to say that ALL of Paris is beautiful but I just took a brief trip back to NYC only to find buildings so tall & so tightly packed together that they obliterated the sky from below. The truth is there's NO place in the world one can travel that they won't encounter people who, for whatever reason, choose misery. If I had my druthers, I'd choose to view those faces in Paris

[@Tinamar65]

I always met the nicest people in Paris! 😊💕

[@nathaliefrenzel8376]

The next video has to be “how to get a French bank account “ because y’all know they are playing the same game there😂

[@damondominique]

I agree I need to make that video but I just DON'T KNOW if I can put myself through that stress AGAIN

[@tamimunaro5705]

It’d be like a 3 part series 😂

[@mariepouvreau8743]

@@damondominique I think if you have an apartment (which you have now, congrats!) it's quite easy to open a bank account !

[@naobe5]

@@mariepouvreau8743 With La Banque Postal maybe , but with the others , it's going to be the same bullshit of which company are you working for and where are your payslips!

[@Airraca]

@@damondominique Hahaha I swear I recall you going through a similar stress of looking for a bank before

[@AliAndreea]

This is literally everything I’ve been going through until I found my apartment. They have these rules because IF you decide to not pay rent one day they can not get you out...

[@slidenapps]

There is major renters protection in the EU. It's very hard to get you out and can take months and months and months. That's why no one wants to really rent to foreigners. There's no guarantee that you will stay. That you will be able to stay.

[@rachelcarey9369]

@@slidenapps What if you were paying cash, up front, for one year?

[@chrisstad]

@@rachelcarey9369 I bet that would be against some law. There are so many regulations in France...

[@rachelcarey9369]

@@chrisstad I'm sure there's a rule hidden in there somewhere, lol!!!!

[@masha7377]

Can I just say how much I appreciate that despite your frustration you remain polite enough with the people on the phone cause they probably don't have any decision making power either. 😊

[@paintwithtihani9926]

Appreciate that he mentioned “I’m a white immigrant, have a French name and this is happening to me...i can’t even imagine anybody else.” He still acknowledged his privilege despite in the hurdles

[@akf2000]

Absolutely, I'm actually afraid the GOVERNMENT will take issue with his shade

[@TheDoriette]

Yeah, but how good is his French? If he's an foreigner of any color they may still be giving him a hard time.

[@puppyspit1132]

@@Andreas4696 suck it up

[@abby4115]

@@TheDoriette his french is incredibly good. He just has a very subtle American accent which is not a disadvantage compared to having a non-western accent.

[@vees9013]

He was 1000% right. Loved that he called himself a white immigrant. He definitely acknowledged his privileges unlike the majority.

[@musicbloempje]

Yes, I totally get the struggle. Me and my husband bought an house in the south of France a couple of years ago. Before we moved officially we wanted a french bankaccount. But in order to start a french bankaccount you need a french phone number. So i go down to the shop and try to get that sorted. The telephone lady there told me though in order to have a french home phone you would need a french bankaccount. But the bank told me a couple of days earlier that to open a french bankaccount you need a home telephone number! The french system is totally impossible at time and not the nicest to immigrants.

[@stellamonde]

musicbloempje jup! I WAS a student and it was still impossible to get „in“! Need a bank account to get a phone, need a french adress to open a bank account and prove that you live there with a electricity bill.. but need a fremch bank account AND a french phone number to get an apartment and set up my electricity contract 😩

[@steverocksyo]

How do you even do all that when if you can't speak French?

[@KellyDurgan]

Alternate title: Why People Lie and Fake Documents to Get Paris Apartments

[@LauraHeartsMakeUp]

Watching Damon in Paris literally makes me want to move to Paris so much that my family hate him

[@damondominique]

😂WOW ❤️❤️❤️ That's the best kind of hater!

[@mynamesvals4672]

I never related more to a comment

[@diego1234561000]

so...this video is making you want to move to Paris (?)

[@LauraHeartsMakeUp]

Diego Torres no just Damon in general not just this video in particular, all of his videos!!

[@renabeliever3628]

laura m but be ready to this crazy search of apartment 😂

[@globin3]

Friendly word of advice: be careful, "sûrement" means "I'll probably be able to pay the rent" and not "surely"! This changes the whooole meaning of your sentence :)

[@mellory2337]

'Certainment' right?

[@theytastesogood8299]

@@mellory2337 Nope, "certainement" in this instance has the same meaning as "sûrement" 🙈 You could say for example "je peux vous assurer être en capacité de payer le loyer" ("I can assure you I'm able to pay the rent")

[@mellory2337]

@@theytastesogood8299 oh oops, I've been using that. French is hard man

[@badrafifi9059]

Absolument is the right replacement

[@mariebourgot4949]

​@@badrafifi9059 More like "sans problème/difficulté" or "facilement".

[@rivergirl4061]

How can he make apartments and legal stuff funny I just dont get it

[@damondominique]

CUZ IT'S ALL A BUNCH OF BOLOGNA! It's crazy to me that we, as humans, created these systems, but we, as humans, sometimes forget that we are the ones who created the rules so we are the ones who can change the rules when they just don't make sense. ANYWAY YALL HEARD FROM ME ALREADY 😂

[@misstarsh7449]

And easy to comprehend hey

[@jlnpgls]

It's just called dealing with French administration. I've been dealing with that shit for years... Never get any better

[@heviutza]

I'm already 4:42 into the video and i didn't find anything funny yet. Better said, everything is very frustrating and annoying. One time, 5 years ago i was in France at a small community beach place for nudists, and there were 3 young french people comming with us from the night's party to our hotel, for afterparty. We had swimming pool and drinks in our hotels yard. Cool cool, they came with us but pretended they didn't know any english. But they sticked with us til late in the morning-afternoon, bubbling in our private pool and drinking our alcohol. Very ugly people ( i don't mean ugly physical appearance, let's be clear) . We were not english nor english native language speakers, but we tried to find a common language so we can communicate. If the young french didn't know any english, they are stupid. If they knew english and pretending they don't, but stil enjoy our private confort that we spent money on, well... that's pure bullshit and i don't want to be around that kind of people anymore. So have fun in Paris or anywhere else in France. I prefer Portugal or Spain or even Italy for a more real heart-warming trip or advanture. with real people and soulfull humans.

[@shaohtsai]

@@damondominique oh, Brazil is not as infuriating, but you're kinda fucked if you don't have a guarantor. One caveat is that usually they ask that your guarantor have property in the same city. What if I'm from out of state and know no one there? Or what if my guarantor, as legit as they are, just don't own anything in the same damn city I wanna move to? There's that, and the amount paperwork it's just short of asking for a DNA sample.

[@ibtissamouakha3920]

Love the openess part when you realize that despite being white and having a french name it s still hard for you, and then say that u can t imagine the process for less lucky people. There is actually a french study made with fake arabic /black..etc applicants vs white ones, that shows the inequality for same application that were rejected only because of their names/origins. PS : i m a french parisian girl so I feel you with the struggle ❤ & congrats on your apartment though 🎉

[@jj7958]

yea happens all the time. People are judged before they even are face to face with whoever just based on their name. Then it can be worse when you do meet face to face. seems like many times in foreign countries, preference is given to a native person because they are there own and discriminate to outsiders.

[@leopolddb9955]

It doesn't sound like you're very French.

[@sousouarrasse7468]

Yeah that happened to me because I’m North African and have an Arab name, I was rejected only because of that

[@essencerobinson7178]

@@leopolddb9955 you can hear text? Lol

[@ronylouis0]

@@leopolddb9955 if you're referring to her name, fuck you. Anyone can be French, no matter what their prior origins are. I have a Spanish looking friend who's last name is "bakhar", and a black friend who's last name is "ruisseau". Look at any country in the world and you'll see last names are mixed in.

[@marionvergnaud7412]

France doesn't like entrepreneur. I'm french and i had to ask the school where i am a teacher part time to say that i was a student. Because the agencies think it's safer to rent to a student whith no money than to a teacher who earn a lot more than 3 times the rent...

[@safsoufa2823]

Totalement vrai

[@zidrasworld]

Marion Vergnaud Why though?

[@chinnychian]

How do you guys get a job that pay 3x the rent tho? Haha that's what i wanna know 😂

[@a-h5348]

Don't worry it's still as hard for a student to get an apartment as well. Where do I find a 'garant' who earns 3x the rent and more because they consider what the garant has to pay monthly for himself ? I'll leave that here.

[@juliencastle2953]

@@a-h5348 Amen!

[@severine5310]

As a French myself I think you should remove the "sûrement" in the message you send because it means "probably" like "I will probably be able to pay the rent" which is not really reassuring :)

[@synkaan2167]

Yeah he should said "je suis sûr de pouvoir payer le loyer" to say what he wanted.

[@TamaraSirandula]

The production value in Damon's videos are so great I almost feel guilty watching them!

[@damondominique]

THAT IS THE SWEETEST THING ANYONE SAID TO ME TODAY. GUYS I NEED THIS SUPPORT - I'M A LITTLE FRAGILE AFTER THESE FRENCH REAL ESTATE AGENTS CAME FOR ME

[@dixnnw8252]

moved to Paris one year ago and this video is ALL. TOO. REAL.

[@XAVIER-xz4qn]

my brain reading your comment: "and I remember it ALL TOO WELL" by Taylor Swift

[@jacobgrayzel7870]

The editing on this video is top-notch. And damon's sense of humor never fails to amuse 😂

[@andrepeyraud2313]

This tells a lot about how stupid the whole rental process is in France: - They'll reject your application if you're not making 3x the rental amount or have no guarantor. This is because it's very hard to evict someone not paying their rent -> The government put that in place to try to help & protect the tenant when in reality it's making it much harder to rent an apartment for those who are starting in life and may not have big incomes or guarantor. The bottom line is by trying to help those in the need, the government is actually making it harder for them to rent

[@dibat94]

Andre Peyraud non pas vraiment. D’abord cette situation n’est valable qu’à paris. Si tu veux un appart plus facilement passes de l’autre côté du périphérique. Donc ce n’est pas à cause de la loi qu’il est difficile de louer. C’est Parceque à Paris il n’y a pas suffisamment de place et aucune construction nouvelle pour accueillir tous les damon du monde. Les vrais responsables sont le fait que le boulot soit centralisé à Paris, pas de nouveaux programme de construction, trop de tourisme. Les premiers pénalisés sont les français de classe moyenne qui doivent aller vivre de plus en plus loin en banlieue.

[@auroraborealis6398]

@@dibat94 cela dit ce n'est pas si facile que ça de louer un appart en Province quand tu es dans une situation précaire et que tu n'as pas de garants..

[@potmki6601]

The explanation is that it helps businesses not people, because government gets more money from businesses. But I think the real reason is to make it harder for immigrants.

[@dibat94]

Ton analyse est à moitié vrai. Mais en fait il n'y a pas de loi qui oblige a gagner 3x le loyer. Ce sont les proprios qui se protègent. Et ceci n'est applicable qu'a Paris, tu veux un appart tu fais comme tous les français (et comme j'ai fais avec ma femme malgré mon bon salaire), tu traverse le periph. C'est certainement pas la faute du gouvernement si on galère a Paris; C'est la faute de la saturation, Paris est trop petit pour accueillir tout le monde. Et les proprios qui veulent s'en mettre plein les poches, airbnb, les riches étranger qui font monter les prix etc...

[@dibat94]

@@potmki6601 whattttt ? unbelievable bulllshit.

[@Nadine-bx2dg]

He’s very attractive, sometimes I get distracted looking at him and I forget to listen to what he’s saying

[@succme1229]

this is so cute...

[@mambosawasdee4164]

👬

[@evejir9502]

That's exactly my problem 😂👍👍

[@laurence9695]

He's not for you girls, can't you tell?

[@mariebourgot4949]

@@mambosawasdee4164 Which doesn't prevent her from admire him. Leave her be, she wasn't being disrespectful.

[@carmenhagan6887]

No one: Literally no one: All of Paris: C’eSt PAs poSsiBle mOnsieur

[@RunTheAtlas]

This reminds me of the scene in L’auberge Espagnole where he’s trying to study abroad and the Erasmus office gives him a mountain of paperwork and rules

[@masoncantrell787]

yes! love that movie

[@MJxoxo]

Omg this video is so hilarious! When I was studying in Paris and was trying to find an apartment it was true hell! In the end I found a 29m3 for 940euro dans le 19ème that I shared with someone else 😂 but you’re really amazing for showing the struggle 🙈

[@corteo]

I think you mean m2 not m3.

[@Milena-dr5it]

Hi Mj !

[@moneyinvestingwithvandi7727]

I like it when you speak French

[@damondominique]

Aparemment il y a des gens qui préfèrent parler avec "quelqu'un qui parle français à côté de moi" 😂 Bref, THANK YOU!

[@ericb.1994]

When he speaks in French his voice is more low and rounded . In English it's more high

[@moneyinvestingwithvandi7727]

Eric B. Because French people don’t talk with their mouth wide open

[@agisa123456789]

@@damondominique that so weird because you have such an incredible French. Je suis jalouse j aimerais tellement etre aussi à l aise à l'oral en anglais mais je pense que je commencerais juste à paniquer xD I just have to practice more. But it s not easy to find how to pratice English in France. I have to practice in an English speaking country.

[@jj7958]

yea it's different than the English. The French is deeper toned. I like it too.

[@carlatraini8804]

this is France: a lot of stupid laws to protect themselves an all the enswers are like 'I am sorry but it won't work' or 'It's not my fault'. They prefer students because students receive help from the French administration to pay their rent, so, as employees, they are gonna pay for sure. The solution I found was sharing the flat with a French girl: she wa sputting the name on the contract and I could have a flat. Once I had my bank account, I could look for something for myself alone. It took me 8 months anyway... Mais bienvenu!

[@amyryder5673]

I searched for a whole summer online and failed, then lived in a youth hostel dorm of 8 on a top bunk for MONTH sleeping with my valuables under my pillow & screaming into the void of parisian house hunting until I gave up and now I live in a homestay instead. it's actually impossible and I review the whole process -1/10

[@ClaireBretel]

Je te rassure Damon c'est aussi dur pour les français de trouver un appartement à Paris...

[@ArtificialPerson]

C'est vrai pour tous aussi, apparemment mdr😂😂😂😂

[@mangostreetproject]

The beginning omg shady 👀

[@damondominique]

I WAS ABOUT TO JUMP THROUGH THAT PHONE AND...ok calm down damon...it's ok...you found your place

[@5LifePath]

I was literally homeless for a month in France because this French woman at my school told me that I didn't qualify for student housing (even though I was a student!!!)

[@cenedictbumberbatch95]

How did you do it? Are you a woman? How does one live homeless as a student? Sorry lol I just need to know because I’m thinking of studying in france

[@leahw2461]

Cenedict Bumberbatch yes I need to know tooo

[@5LifePath]

@@cenedictbumberbatch95 Damn sorry i took so long to respond. It was rough, I was Couchsurfing (back when it was free), sleeping at peoples places that I didnt even knew, getting a hostel on the days I could afford it, sharing an Airbnb for 2 people with four guys... Yes I am a woman. I wasn't sleeping on the street so I am sorry if that was misleading but I was definitely homeless. Would not recommend

[@CryWolfFilms]

Did you end up getting assistance? Why were you rejected??​@addierockagirl

[@s1827-w5w]

the editing is superb, I feel like I'm listening to my bestie rant and this video made me hella happy

[@decalcomanies]

As a freelance illustrator from Russia living in Paris, I FEEL your pain and I relate so much to your video! Getting a descent apartment is like getting that lucky ticket in a lottery

[@teona4279]

The fact that I'm going to start doing this in a month or two is wild. I do have some French friends, my roommate will have a French pay stub and I'll be classed as a student (or have a pay stub myself) so at least I have those things going for me right? But the timing of everything is what I'm most worried about because I've already learned from other expats that the _postal service_ is a nightmare in and of itself and so I won't be shipping my stuff to a place where I'll have to argue to get it no way, no way. Everything about the *moving* to France sounds like a nightmare, but the living I'll be doing once there will make it worth it. So glad you finally got everything sorted, more paperwork ahead, but at least you're done with the paper cuts!

[@eilennene3394]

I’m French and I was abroad for 7 years. When I came back last year, I was self-employed in France. I could not rent cause I’m not employee, neither buy cause I could not get a loan cause don’t have a tax return from last year. Of course I was abroad. I returned to my parents. And I’m lucky cause I could have had no one

[@aleqas]

Let's all agree that Damon's editing is très bien wow! You're really stepping it up. I legit don't want the video to end.

[@BlueBubbleGuum]

As a french person as soon as I started to watch your video I wanted to shout "go to leboncoin!!!!" Glad you found an appartement. It is extremely hard and stressful, even for a french person. So I can't even imagine for a foreigner...

[@j4cobm1]

took me almost 2 months to find a ROOM!! with garants... Now imagine having a latin name and not speaking french

[@mehdihassine8033]

When you hear this sharp ringing through the phone: it's a fax number Damon!! After 15years in Paris, I understand you so much. Really happy for you and your new appartment. Pressé de voir ta nouvelle déco.

[@heddasusanne]

I can't believe that small apartment is over 900 euros! Paris is expensive!!!

[@pikachuiswatchingyou]

His location and apartment are pretty nice. I pay 518€ for 17m² near Belleville. However, I'm French have a French garant, plus, was a work study student.

[@valerincorcino3095]

In NYC there are no apartments by that price like literally nowhere to be found, people that live in the projects maybe pay that or less and people that have been living in NYC for decades on that same apartment get rent control, everyone else is over 1,200

[@diamondsharry]

Honestly that’s equivalent to what a 1 BR/studio apartment would be in my US town (

[@adenfranco9153]

Way better than LA. It’s super expensive here for no reason

[@Erdf3542]

That would be a steal in London

[@Nonoemie86]

I'm french, I work, I have a contract, my partner try to have his own company and has the "chômage", we have 2 garants with 3times the amount of the rent aaaaaand....we are still looking since September!!!!! I'm gonna be crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can totally understand you!!! Happy for you by the way ;-)

[@faiza3736]

And then there's people like me who never found an appartment in Paris while living there for 3 years 😅. So if you think that's hard, just imagine what it is when you're French but from minorities. Even when you meet the strict requirements. Very few landlords will trust you, most of the time they don't even bother replying when you submit a file.

[@potmki6601]

Where do you live then?

[@RealCheeseOnly]

That is just so sad to hear. I hate that people are like this. Discrimination sucks.

[@amakaa2393]

So where did you stay for 3 YEARS??

[@StrangeMeadowLark]

I also have to say that what Damon is doing is incredibly good, important work lol. Making the world a better place. Helping people (moi). To see what it's like for an anglophone to go to Paris, to move there, how to learn French, etc. Showing me how difficult it would be lol. Merci Damon, vous êtes une étoile.x

[@anonymouspeirce6417]

The issue is, when a tenant doesn’t pay you can’t legally get them out until the contract is done, it’s a whole issue

[@adriengoux]

exactly. as a landlord you get stuck for at least 6 months with a non paying tenant. Because rules does not protect landlord, and overprotect tenants, the system went crazy and we ended up with this sh*t. sorry for that man.

[@jessykapop]

I was just going to say that. They have to protect their investment. Unfortunately this is typical in most countries.

[@monkeygoesbananas]

lol in the the U.S, at least in the state of Texas where I was a student, landlords could initiate eviction proceedings and have you out of the unit within a month of the missed rent payment. It was virtually unheard of for judges to rule against them. Best case scenario, if you had a special case like a disability, domestic violence, sudden death of the main breadwinner etc they would just order landlords to waive any fees and charges associated with evicting you, but you would still be out on the street within a month. And even with that many protections, landlords require an income >3x the rent, a list of references, credit checks, and a guarantor for most students even if our income was high enough. Oh, and can't forget the *minimum* $500 deposit and all the application and "administrative" fees. I think I might actually prefer the French system because then at least tenants have rights in exchange for jumping through all those hoops.

[@adriengoux]

monkeygoesbananas I didn’t know that. That’s crazy, and totally useless so. I would like a liquid market: you can choose to live wherever you want as long as you pay, and pay a security deposit of 1 month. If you miss 1 payment, you have the month to pay it if not your out (so no loss for the landlord) But that’s just my point of view 🙂

[@draconiandevil03]

All the people of the thread are missing on this very simple fact.

[@realtalktina]

I had the same problem this year when I moved to France. I had to stay in a hotel for 3 months and then I actually moved in with my French professor for a month until his student apartment was available. The reason why they have to make sure you can pay is because it's not like the USA when they can evict you with the quickness In France once you are in the apartment it's very hard to evict someone. It's still silly!! Congratulations I felt so happy inside my body, personally when you got those Clé *keys*!!!!

[@ninithp9930]

11:34 , this sound is when you're calling a "fax" haha they probably put the number wrong

[@m00min-music]

I study in Bordeaux at the moment and I was in the exact situation as you although I'm an EU citizen!!! Right now, I live in a flat with a French guy without contract and I'm lucky because I get along with him but if I imagine living with someone who could take advantage of my dependence on them - no surprise there are so many homeless people in Bordeaux!!! Finding a flat is a privilege in France, reserved for rich people or people with parents who can help them out.

[@mehmetrumidemir1534]

IMAGINE: BEING BORN IN A DUTCH CITY GROWING UP THERE BEING A UNI STUDENT BUT STILLLLLL CANT FIND NO STUDIO!!! I FEEL YOUR STRESS DAMON😭😤

[@sanaa.2195]

Imagine doing this without knowing french and with a family 🥵

[@KyleReevesSci]

"I don't like to be upset or angry or frustrated..." Welcome to Paris, that's what I said when I moved here, too. 😂

[@sebholding]

There is a shortage of real estate in Paris because the government doesn't allow enough new constructions. Also it is very risky to rent to somebody because evicting somebody in France take at least 6 months (so your one or two month security deposit won't be enough, not mentioning the fact that people who don't paye the rent usually destroy the appartment before to leave), that's why they look for people with a secured job. Free lance don't have a stable income, they don't know if your business will still be working next year or not. It is even more risky to rent to people from other countries because they can just leave the country. So that's why this kind is situation exist. If you have so much money, you can find somebody to make a long term deal on Airbnb.

[@maurice22ravel]

"This shirt has a reputation of, you know... just the buttons start coming off" That's a way to put it! 😂😂😂

[@saregarde]

The best way would have been asking for the help of your community to find someone leaving his apartment and ready to give your file to the landlord directly. Living here for 10 years (french) that is the best way for non student and especially artists to find an apartment.... And that is kind of what you try to do haha ! Happy you find your nest !

[@leelydia456]

Easiest way is to found and talk directly to a landlord like damon at the end. And always go with someone, we don't know what can happen security first

[@ReganShorter]

You did it bish!!! It's so f*ckin hard to get established here. I wasn't even in Paris. We ended up paying multiple months of rent directly to a landlord so that we could get a lease just to get our bank account. We lived in a hotel for 3 weeks with our cats just trying to get set up 😭. It's rough. You did it!!

[@sannahsadiq603]

J'adore le "okay ciao ciao, aurevoir" haha. Bizarrement c'est normale de dire ciao en France 😂 D'ailleurs, VIVE LE BON COIN !

[@leahluvvanderson3131]

Sannah Sadiq 😂😂😂😂😂

[@AR-ef1rs]

LMAO imaginez en Italie ils disent " bon, salut, salut, arrivederci" xD

[@rimun5235]

I also found that weird. The French classes never brought up ciao...

[@eniluap7616]

French girl here ! Yes it is very difficult to find an appartment in Paris... But as you said at the end of the video, if the landlord signs the contract he cannot get you out of the appartment easily if you do not pay the rent. That's why they are all very suspicious and selective ! They are afraid to lose many month of rent :) I grew up in the parisian suburbs and had 2 garants and I also was a french student but I was not able to find a place there (I called a loooooooot of landlords and my french name and face didn't help me either hahaha only money earned via a CDI makes a difference in this game). It pissed me off so I moved away in a smaller city where I found a way bigger and cheaper place (with a garden and everything !!!!). Congrats on your place !

[@maricarmen3948]

I'm currently in the middle of renting an apartment in paris and I just can't deal anymore the stress is killing me, this video could not have come at a better time bc I literally see myself reflected in Damon 😂

[@wearilive]

that libra is coming in HOT

[@aliya6846]

Damon, just wanted to say that it might be illegal to record a phone conversation in France. Hope you checked that or got consent from those people. I really don't want you to get into trouble

[@oliviabougeard2855]

Lia no problem, if you don’t see their face it’s fine

[@lounesss]

in France it’s illegal yeah

[@poohoff]

Living is soon to be illegal too in France

[@user-ig5wv1oq4k]

who knew a video about French bureaucracy could be so entertaining lol but really I loved this video (the production value *chefs kiss*) and I can’t wait to see more

[@sergiosanjorg]

Damon, someone has to say it, that shirt it's too SMALL, that's why it get unbuttoned .

[@arsey1833]

HEY you shut up, it’s the perfect size, lets keep it this way.

[@colinchampollion5605]

Just take that little shirt-off ~Damon😈😉

[@MaybeM00dy]

I love how he actually shows the hustle, instead of just being like it was quite difficult and not showing the frustration

[@mikedelfina5280]

I am french live in paris first with my family and now in my own flat, and I must say that all these legal requirements works in the favour of people with a lower income, they are necessary for students or employee. Everyone wanna live in paris it would be unfair to let only people with a high income live in paris and not people who work or study here. Also about immigrants, they are mostly employees so it's easier for them to get an apartment. I can assure you these laws were not made against foreigners, it was made for social reasons. good luck

[@mikil6113]

if for social reasons, then they do a horrible job at it at the CPAM office, I got the same run around and even worse at CPAM, bcs at least i Managed to get an appartment, 2 bank accounts, and a french cell phone number...and I still do *NOT* have my medical insurance card! At least when I had to go to the doctor and the pharmacy the prices are dirt cheap compared to USA...I'm like what only 23 € for a non-insured cash-paying patient, hell YES I'LL PAY THAT LOW BIT! my GP dr in usa is now up to 329 $ for a 20 minute office visit, before it goes to insurance company to be adjusted downwards.

[@stephaniegonzales1640]

yo for real that's the damn hustle... 1) being upfront about your situation, 2) offering advance rent, and 3) showing up. Bravo!!!!!

[@jacknoonan9172]

That's crazy. Even when I went to rent an apartment in Korea last year, I showed them my passport (not even my visa), gave them my deposit money, and signed the contract. Done.

[@elaorleansplus]

Damon, thanks so much for this. After months of calling landlords from leboncoin and PAP (I couldn't be bothered trying agencies with my earning history) I gave up and was ready to go back home. This video encouraged me to give it one more time (My current art Residency ends at the end of August). So after months of freaking out I used your message formula (left the principle but changed the story) and I am moving to the Montmartre next month. If you ever would like a coffee there, I owe you. X

[@froufou100]

wow, I am French living in the UK and didn't know it was so difficult to well spend your money in France. I opened a bank account in 1 week here 25 years ago. I rented places and all was done within 1/2 weeks. You can rent as a freelancer in the UK, not sure what docs they ask for though. Oh MY, all the stress you have to go through about this manual admin reminds me why I think France is really backward. No thank you. Thank you for the fun video and good luck in your new place xx

[@christopherlee-hild9987]

Damon, I'm so happy for you. The look on your face when you finally got the keys and did your joyous spin-around in the apartment was priceless! Congratulations!

[@TotsiVlog]

Ahahaha this video really gave me flashbacks to last year! I'm Finnish and I went to exchange to southern France. The system was nuts, not only the "getting an apartment" -system. All the processing with studying, apartment and CAF documents took AGES. Many people were rude because they noticed from my accent that I'm not native, there was a lot of visible bad mouthing behind our backs because we, as exchange students, talked in english for each other for better mutual understanding. I really love the country's geographical diversity and beauty and great outdoor-culture with great restaurants, but their system is too inconsistently regulated in my opinion. I do understand that it takes some time for everyone to get use to a whole new system, especially when you're moving to another country. That year really just made me appreciate the way things are handled in my homecountry. :D

[@fushigifrenchie]

Oh wow that scene in front of the building with your friend when you're waiting made me nostalgic, this was my high school!

[@matt00794]

this video kept getting recommended to me so I finally watched it. wow that was stressful. I thought my apartment search was tough!

[@thomasfinch]

Oh my word. This brings back the scars I had when trying to find an apartment as a student in Paris. One of the silver linings is that if I can find an apartment in Paris, I feel confident I could find a place to live anywhere!

[@bjmurray1842]

My landlord said it best: "The French invented bureocracy,

[@JN-ct5ls]

for someone who wants to move to paris thank you for this cause it puts a lot of things in perspective

[@viewer1338]

My god paris is beautiful everywhere u put your camera down and maybe plus the perfect color grading

[@Beyllion]

4:26 "If I don't pay my rent take my security deposit and boom we're done". The main reason why the landlords are scared is because the french law makes it extremely difficult for them to throw someone out if they don't pay their rent. The person can stay for months or even years before they're ordered to leave. And they won't have paid anything in the meantime. For example there's a law that says that if a squatter enters your own home and stays there for more than 48h, it becomes impossible to get them to leave. Even the police can't force them to get out, only a judge can. They will have effectively stolen your home. The problem is with the (many) laws.

[@marinad3708]

Rules in France are like circles that you can't break into! 😂 Gotta find a chill apt owner and just deal with them

[@coxo3261]

The reason for all that trouble is that French law makes it extremely hard for landlords to kick a tenant out, so landlords have no choice but to be very selective beforehand, and renting to someone with a CDI in a french company means that they're sure that the rent will be paid.

[@youngintelect]

This video got my edges skresssed. I’m glad you made it through 😂

[@_hannahkruse_]

I’m so incredibly impressed by your confidence

[@abeersiddiqui3187]

watching this gave me war flashbacks to when i was a student in france and had to deal w people as rude as this )):

[@LivingBobby]

hahaha, glad to hear this via my recommendations lol! YAYAYYAYAY!

[@anthonyajlouni]

We love you Bobby

[@Tyyada]

I can't wait to see the apartment tour after all the decoration

[@tammyl6909]

going to a small independent real estate agency (those you find in the corner of streets) sometimes can help. That's how i found my 2nd apartment in paris when i was studying here. Walk in, tell them your situation, they might have a few appartments in their file which they don't wanna bother taking pics, putting them online.. the whole nine yards. I didn't have a local guarantor at the time, so what i did was asked my family to gather all their income into one account for a few months, print out a good bank statement and showed it to the agent. He said it was fine, showed me a good apartment. I signed the contract the next day, pay for the deposit, he took the agent fee and i dealt with the landlord there after. The landlord with a nice polish man. Both the agent and the landlord are immigrants, so i guess it helped them understand the situation, too .

[@gecko7167]

This video was so high quality. It's like a mini movie. Ur awesome.

[@jordandufault7038]

I had the very similar problems finding my apartment in Paris in February. I am also self-employed with foreign income. Even with my French boyfriend’s parents as guarantors (both specialist doctors), I was rejected for all but one apartment (my last choice), and the agency only accepted on the condition that it be treated as my in-laws’ secondary residence. This allowed the agency to charge as much they wanted in fees (€3,000). I think they went out of their way with the landlord to make sure I got the apartment because they knew I was desperate enough to pay their extortionate fees. When I tried to negotiate the fees, they said they would waive the TVA if I paid in cash. So yes these absurd rules are flexible - just not in your favor. Absolute nightmare.

[@nica1]

Félicitations, Damon! I went through similar struggles with the bureaucracy when I lived in Brazil. All it takes is one good person that is willing to think outside the box. This just goes to show that if you persist in anything, you will succeed 😉.

[@gingacat]

you got the key on my birthday day!! libra hi-5 i got my tiny tiny chambre de bonne through my student's parent. i teach their kids English and i was looking for a apartment for months after living in a French house for 3 years (too noisy with many people in the house), i asked them just out of curiocity, and they have just bought one and had it renovated, and bam, i got mine this way.

[@charlinesha]

I feel so embarrassed as a french person to see all the BS you went through ! But so happy you found your « chez toi » 🤗 Love. Char.

In Spain, you can get an apartment without any contract if you pay in advance for 6 months, approx. but only in case if you go directly to the landlord, BUT finding homes without agencies is really hard ))) I understand your experience.

[@dmixdup]

It’s probably impossible to evict people in France so they want to be close to 100% sure you will pay rent for the entire term.

[@illonavijverberg8822]

Just for some clarification on the rental contracts and the duration. If you rent a furnished apartment, the initial lease is 1 year, but as long as you keep paying and want to stay, you stay. For the empty apartments, the initial lease is 3 years, but you stay as long as you want. In any case, once the lease is signed, the landlord can't really kick you out for no good reason, only if you stopped paying rent or if they need to get the place back to use for themselves (like moving a sick parent closer to them, putting their kids through University, stuff like that). Even then, they have to give you a 3 months notice, and wanting to sell the apartment is not event considered a valid reason to kick a tenant out, because here you can sell as an "occupied dwelling". A good rule of thumb is not to try with the agencies and go straight with landlords if you don't tick all the boxes. Moving in also gets way cheaper this way. Finally, security deposit and the "garant" are not used in the same way. The deposit is just kept aside in case you caused some damage to the place that needs fixing when you leave. The garant is someone who agrees to pay your rent in case you are unable to do so.

[@maidanlebon7358]

5:28 I know how you feel like and I am sorry you had to go through this, imagie me being North African Algerian in France lol... it has never been easy

[@IsseKonja]

On vous loue des hlm gratuitement….

[@healthlover0117]

I felt that sooooo much... I'm polish, studying in Nice, and french administration is just so frustrating. Problems on problems. And people treating me like shit because of my accent. Like its so humiliating... Sending love, courage 💜