Resident selection at Koas
On this page, you will find information on the key factors that affect getting a housing offer from Koas. Resident selection is governed by the guidelines of the Housing Finance and Development Center of Finland Ara and Koas’ own rules.
Need assessment as well as income and wealth comparison are used in resident selection. This means that low-income applicants are given priority. If you have a high and regular income, you may have to wait longer to get an apartment, especially in the most popular housing locations.
If your need for housing is urgent or your situation changes unexpectedly, please contact Koas customer service immediately by e-mail at koas@koas.fi or tel. +358 29 180 4444 (weekdays from 12 noon to 3 pm, call price 8.35 cents/call + 16.69 cents/min).
Koas resident selection process
- In the resident selection process, the guidelines of the Housing Finance and Development Center (Ara) and the rules of Koas are followed.
- Apartments become available when someone terminates their lease, which means only then the apartment can be offered to applicants.
- Priority is given to low-income applicants.
- If you have a high and regular income, you may not be the first choice for the most affordable or most popular apartments.
- In the case of equal applicants, the earlier date of submission of the application decides whether the apartment will be granted.
- Graduate, doctoral and post-doctoral students can apply for apartments, but high and regular income may affect the chances of getting an apartment.
The application date and criteria are important
- In the Koas system the applications are in the order according to the original submission date.
- During the validity period of the application, you can make changes to your application while keeping the original submission date.
- Remember that changing the application criteria can affect your chances, as different criteria attract different numbers of applicants.
- Applicants for a family apartment with children are given priority over applicants without families.
The most popular apartment types and waiting times
The most popular apartment types are small or medium-sized studios near the city center. In these apartments there is little turnover, which means longer waiting times (around 6-10 months). Apartments are better available in spring and early summer.
Larger two-room family apartments and single shared apartment rooms can be obtained faster.
In the late summer and autumn, new students from out of town have priority for apartments that become available.
Credit check
Koas checks your credit information in connection with the housing offer. A payment default entry in the credit information register does not automatically prevent you from receiving a housing offer. Applications are processed on a case-by-case basis, and certain conditions may be related to the rental agreement, such as a security deposit or a fixed-term rental agreement. Unpaid rents to Koas prevent a new contract until the debt is taken care of.
Additional tips for applying for an apartment
In order for you to receive an apartment offer, we need a confirmation about your studies.
Add a link to your credits from the Oma Opintopolku service in the additional information section of the application. New student, add a link to the acceptance letter to the housing application from Opintopolu. Alternatively, you can send these by email to Koas.
Add a link to your transcript from the Oma Opintopolku service in the additional information section of the application. New student, add a link to the acceptance letter to the housing application from Opintopolku. Alternatively, you can send these by email to Koas via koas@koas.fi. You can find the link in the Oma Opintopolku / My Studyinfo service, under My completed studies and Share study information.
After sending the application, you will receive a confirmation message by e-mail. In the message you will find instructions for renewing your application.
- Your application is valid for three months, so remember to renew it in time, if the search for an apartment is still relevant.
- During the application period, you can add, delete or change your wishes regarding the housing locations.
Each applicant may only have one application for each type of apartment, i.e. shared apartment, studio or family apartment (two-room apartment or larger). Couples may have only one family apartment application.
Making a new application for the same apartment type deletes your previous application.