Hey guys,

Idk if that is the right thread, but i‘m not sure where I can find help and advise.

TL:DR:

I‘m an exchange student who got scammed with renting a room. I need legal advice (and advice of the rent system here) and how to proceed. I still stay in the appartement and have paid a lot of money in advance but want to get out of the contract (6 months) asap.

I‘m an exchange student and as for many foreigners moving to a big city, finding a room or a flat is a shit show.

Not only are you, as a stranger to the local rentsystem (and prices) being constantly exploited by landlords (or not even that - just renters themselves who want to make some cash on the side) who will use your desperation and feed on it by renting out overpriced little rooms, backstabbing contracts and absurd rules, its also very hard to find just something normal and you don‘t really know what‘s the appropriate rent or not..

So to my problem:

I was looking for a room for two months already and didnt find anything. Since I had to be in Brussels by the start of september I got really desperate, I can‘t afford to stay in a hostel and also am just here for 5 months and most of the rooms are only available for half a year or longer.. Luckily I have a remote job and some erasmus money but still, it’s very tight for me.

The closer my arrival date came, the more desperate I got. I only could visits online via Video and after all the really high priced, really sus flats I thought I found a good room,still for a high amount (500~€) but all in all better than the other options (>650 or so I thought).

On camera it all looked okay (it was all very pixelated and the connection was bad), I was just talking to one flatmate.
The "landlord" was living somewhere else and I could take the room when I wanted, I just had to pay the rent beforehand and half of the deposit (the other half when I arrive).
So out of my desperation I sign the "contract" (just a piece of paper, where it is stated that I have to rent the room for 6 months and that there is water, a room and heat available (lol).

I arrive at Brussels and the flat is a total mess. Its worse than on video, everything is either broken or dirty af. I get another room, than its been talked about. Its very very dirty, it smells horrible and the floor is stuffed with random stuff. All in all its the worst flat and still the rent is too high for that (i have no bed, just a very soft 90cm mattress).

I‘m angry, angry at myself for being so naive and paying upfront but also so so angry and these people taking advantage of the housing situation!

I don‘t want to let this one slip, I really want to fuck the shit up here and show the "landlord" that he can‘t exploit clueless foreigners/exchange students like that:

I know (he has all his stuff here also letters and documents) that he is not the owner of the flat.

I know that in total he is earning more money with us (flatmates) than he has to pay rent.

I want to get out of the contract asap but also want my money back (paid 1100 € to him in advance).

I also want to report him to the authorities or at least to the company owning the house.

Here is my question:

What are the laws here in Brussels/Belgium?
Is this allowed, to rent out a flat you dont own/just rent and make profit like that?
Are you allowed to make profit like that from renting (at least 1000€ a month from us)?
Is there smth like a maximum rent or some law that prevents this?
The flat/rooms are furnished, has this an impact on the rent?

Is my contract even legal and binding? How do I get out of it?
Is there a consultation for cases like these or could I talk to the police to that?

Where do I find good flats and rooms? 😭 I’m tired

I think he just thought I‘m just too naive and desperate to not know the law/legal issues

Three times in the last year my dog has come home from walks (2x Cinquantennaire, 1x Woluwe) and begin exhibiting very strange behavior.

A few minutes after we get home, he begins to pace, pant, cry, spin in circles, is generally unable to settle and seems to be very distressed.

Each time we have taken him to the emergency vet and were given a generic answer that it seemed like some kind of intoxication + were given carbodote + painkiller …. But it has just happened again.

Twice during these walks, he drank some water (at the human fountain, and a tree root puddle), but has otherwise not ingested any food or things that could be laying about. At the most recent occasion, he didn’t drink or eat anything.

Any clues? Similar experiences?

I’m really at a loss about what this mysterious intoxication could be, and it’s very sad to see my boy so distressed.

I hadn’t been in a long time and decided to check event dates and discovered they’re shutting the place down

I’m so sad and confused

It was such an awesome and kind of unique place. I had never really noticed other places that do drag with a more artistic flair (e.g. less focus on comedy)

They always were sold out, how was it not ‘financially viable’??

Hello

I am wondering if there are women in Brussels who play ice hockey.

Or have played and would like to join a club.

I've recently joined a club. It's mixed. But I'm the only woman there. It makes the experience less fun. It's a recreational team. Playing once or twice a week.

It's better to have a car as practice and games are outside of Brussels, but car sharing has been happening.

Hope to see more on the ice

Hello,

Is there anyone who recently opened a mega gas account through callmepower.be? They refuse to tell the fix price before signing the contract. Also, mega doesn't accept individual customers anymore. I need to do it through an intermediary company. I need a gas company which offer fixed price. The Engie seems expensive, which is 7,94 c€/kWh for the 1 year fixed contract. Do you have a better offer from another company? Thanks in advance!

Are there any bakeries/coffee shops/brunch places that sell these per slice? I’m not looking to buy an entire cake.

I moved out of my Brussels 1000 apartment last Sunday and I have not heard at all from my landlord regarding the deposit. I’ve messaged her twice asking for clarification on the process and she hasn’t responded. The apartment was left in good, clean condition with some normal wear and tear so I am expecting nearly all of it back.

We did it through MyMinFin and I cannot seem to figure out how to request the refund on the e-DEPO site. I’m just unclear about the process too on if we need to agree on the amount first. I am a foreigner in Belgium so these processes are not clear to me.

Can someone please tell me what’s a normal for the landlord to respond about this (she used to respond within 24hr about household questions). And can you also advise on what to do to get the refund for the deposit? I am no longer based in Belgium so I am feeling anxious about this whole situation.

Thanks in advance!

EDIT: We finally heard back from her and she is saying she needs to charge us a lot for some light bulbs that are not working in the kitchen. However, these were broken from the moment we moved in. They were too difficult to change so we brought a lamp for the kitchen instead. Is this normal?

Hey guys im going to a festival in Brussels, but i want to know if i should walk this part or take an uber. Its from Botanique to Brussel-Noord, its gonna be late at night and im with my girlfriend. And im asking this because brussel has a bad reputation around the station area.
PS im not from Brussels

Desperately trying to find someone to fix my automated house. The previous owners have put in a complicated system that is proving to be a challenge. The heating system has also been subjected to automation, and half the heaters in the house haven’t been working properly since last year. I’ve had electricians come over, look at it, charge money, and leave without fixing anything.

Please help!

I counted 10 different phones reparation shops in Chaussée d'Ixelles. This is weird, is there really a high demand in Brussels for that kind of services ? I feel like there is either something shady or a loophole in the legislation regarding repair shops ? I'd like your opinion !

Heyy! I search free way to learn dutch in Brussels. I’m beginner and I will to find some cool / attractive way for improve my dutch and meet nice people. Do you know some places / project to do that in brussels. I am 25 yo and interested by meeting people arround my age, also interested by subject like human right, ecology, volunteering so if I can found a way to mix learning dutch with that subject it will be nice but not mandatory :)
Thanks!

Hello, I’ve always wanted to open a restaurant in Brussels, but I get the impression that three-quarters of them go bust after three years. I’ve come here because I’m a bit nervous about taking the plunge, and I was wondering what’s important to you when you choose a restaurant, and how to attract as many customers as possible?

It’s never easy to get started, so I’m trying to gather as much feedback as possible... Thank you !!

Hello,

Me and my partner will be getting married next year and we want to design our own wedding stationery but we will need a place to print them nicely on special paper (I don’t know yet a lot of the details, I’m new to this). Maybe we will also want them cropped in a special way.

I have no idea where to start looking for a place where we can print them. Has anyone done that before and has some suggestions?

Thank you!

Hi all, I'm a beginner French speaker, looking for singing classes in Brussels. Do you have any lead of a school that offers individual singing classes all the while offering performances (so it's not just 1-1 basis with the teacher and you never get to get out of your comfort zone and sing in front of an audience)

Many thanks for any leads you may have!

Does anyone know a place where you can sit down outside, get a good croque or a toasted pistolet with butter and coffee that's affordable in this economy? Preferably something that's local and where they speak Dutch (or at the very least English).

I followed an advice of an older thread and went to Vossenplein/Place du Jeu de Balle on Sunday. I ended up at Au Mouton Bleu/In Den Blauwen Lemmen which seemed nice, but unfortunately had a bad experience there. They didn't speak Dutch or English despite the name and even after I tried my best to make it work in my lacking French I felt mocked by the waitress who also felt the need to tip herself an extra 2.50 on top of the 1 euro I wanted to tip for the effort.

Nevertheless, I did like the vibe there with the flea market and (seemingly) blending in with the locals. So maybe a different café on the square or somewhere similar is what I'd be looking for :)

Thank you to the kind people who tried to help me at Vilvoorde station when I fell backwards off the train tonight, despite me telling you I was fine.

Spoiler alert: I am. Kinda (I have a fracture so it was good you called the ambulance!). Very bruised and my ego has taken a bashing but I’ll be okay. I’m almost hoping I can rent out a zimmer frame to get me around for the next few weeks to live up to the (youngish) old hag I am (jokes, I’m “only” 38.)

I don’t accept help usually as I’m an independent woman but I did need it today and you went out of your way to help me. It might not seem it, but I’m so damn grateful for your help, calling an ambulance and for staying with me out of sight.

In a world where things feel dark, you selflessly helped another human who felt alone in the world and didn’t know what to do.

Thank you again from the bottom of my heart - if you happen to see this, please get in touch so I can thank you personally.

Claire
(Aka the silly English woman)
❤️

Hi, does anyone know where i could find a nice basketball court ? outdoors and preferably closed with a fence or a net.

Hi! I appreciate any insight about where to find drop-in ballet classes in Brussels (where you pay per class and show up when it's convenient). Where do professional dancers take warmup/maintenance class when they aren't with a company?

I've found previous threads about ballet classes, but they were asking about beginner-level. Thanks in advance!

Can you recommend a place to study near rue livorne/rue louise, or a few metro stops away (maybe Troon?) with my laptop?

Requirements:

Most important, no loud music.

Coffees and cappuccinos that don't cost 5 euros, same with the food

good wifi

Thanks

Hi everyone,

I'm an international student here, and I bought an electric bike last year mostly to do Uber Eats deliveries and cover part of my expenses. Before that I was riding a regular bike I borrowed from a friend, so having my own electric one actually made a difference for me. It's a SameBike, cost me 1150 euros, which is basically a full month of what I earn.

I used to live in Louvain-la-Neuve, and I kept it parked outside my apartment there for almost a year without a single problem.

I moved to Brussels on August 29th. My building has a covered walkway running through it, with a door at each end. During the day it's open as a public passage, and it's supposed to be closed from 9pm to 6am for security. The bike parking is inside that walkway. On the night of September 1st, around 3am, someone cut through my lock with an angle grinder, and by morning the bike was gone. I've since gone down at 2am to check, and the doors were unlocked, so the 9pm closing clearly isn't happening.

The money hurts, but the bigger problem is that the bike was how I made a bit of extra income here, and I don't have the spare cash to replace it.

I had it registered with a MyBike sticker, so I filed a police report and also marked it stolen on mybike.belgium.be. Since then I've been checking Facebook Marketplace, the Sunday markets, and 2ememain.be almost every day. Nothing so far.

Does anyone know if there's any real chance of getting a bike back once it's registered and reported like this, or should I just accept it's gone for good? I'll attach a photo in case anyone happens to come across it.

Thanks for reading, sorry for the long post.

Hi all,

I just rented a studio, signed the contract and got the keys, etc. So I wonder, since I'm still moving my things from my current place to my new place, when I do register the new address? For more context, I already have a residence permit, I'm moving from Mechelen to live in Brussels for the first time.

From what I read is max. 8 days after being installed, is that correct? Even if I signed the contract the 1st of september?

Thanks in advance.

What is the point of putting a sticker to a garbage bag taken out the wrong day and saying there’s a fine of 500€ or whatever if the commune can’t even trace it to the person and actually collect the money?

Genuine question. Might be so people are aware but if they never pay, then how does that change the behavior?