International students in Clermont-Ferrand

Discover our housing services.

The easy way to find a place to live in Clermont Ferrand

Throughout the years, Moversia has provided a stress-free accommodation service to hundreds of students from all over the world.

Discover our housing service.

How does our housing package work and why contact us?

It’s not easy when you have just arrived in a new city, especially if you don’t speak the local language. As an international student you will be faced with many challenges when looking for a place to live:

  • The French system and French administration can be confusing and may quickly overwhelm any newcomer, even if you do speak French.
  • The local housing rental market is highly regulated by French law and very complex for an international person. From the day you sign the entry inspection to the day you leave, you can easily fall into various traps leading to major problems and unplanned expenses.
  • Furthermore, it is very difficult to find an owner or an estate agent who will accept an international tenant without a financial guarantor living in France.
  • France is known for its bureaucracy, and you will have plenty of paperwork to deal with when renting a flat (lease contract, entry inspection, electricity and gas contract, internet contract, housing insurance, opening a French bank account…).

That is why Moversia has developed its welcome package to provide you an all-inclusive housing search service.

Moversia can find an accommodation in Clermont Ferrand for you, either prior to or after your arrival in Clermont. During the first few weeks in Clermont, our agency will be your main local contact dealing with all the paperwork for your housing, making your first few weeks in the city stress free, so you can really enjoy your new experience right from the beginning.

Our services are based on our personal experience. We have built a strong local network in Clermont-Ferrand which enables us to meet most of your needs. Our team members are fluent in English, Spanish, and of course French.

What does the welcome package include?

Support

We will provide you general information regarding your move, local life, and French system.

Accommodation Search

We will fine-tune your expectation and make it fit with the characteristics and availabilities of the local rental market.
We will provide you information about local prices, types of room available and local rules.

Administrative Formalities

We provide you with information about booking a room; the lease contract, the entry inspection formalities, the deposit payment, as well as housing insurance.

Opening a French Bank Account

We will inform you about all the documents you will need, specifics rules, and the different steps to opening your French bank account.

Airport or Train Station Pick-up Service

We will clearly explain how it works and how to keep in touch to make it work once you get there.

Assistance with your Housing Benefit Application

We will give you more details about French government financial aid (CAFCaisse d’Allocations Familiales / APLAide Personnalisée au Logement), and rules to be able to apply for the benefit.

As soon as you arrive in Clermont, we will be able to help you with any other requirements with the help of our solid network of local partners.

How much does our service cost?

This will depend on your situation and requirements. Get in touch with us!

Accommodation search

Before and after your arrival

Due to Covid crisis & its consequences on international mobility, we have adjusted our processes. We are able to find you a room in Clermont-Ferrand and surroundings before you get there. It’s also a way to answer to a big expectation: get an accommodation letter for your VISA Process.

1.

How do we proceed ?
  • You start the process by completing the Moversia Needs Assessment Form. This will provide us with all the information we need to find you accommodation that is adapted to your personal expectations. We will also provide you with more information about the local rental market, to give you a realistic view of the monthly budget you will need to get a suitable room.
  • A team member will visit available flats within our strong network of local owners and partners.
  • We will take pictures and make videos of the flats available and send them to you by email. You can then use these to decide together with your family.
  • Live visits are also possible (Whatsapp / Teams / Facetime).
  • Once you agree to one of the offers and conditions, we will book the accommodation for you.

2.

Finalizing Your Booking

In most cases, you will be required to make a deposit by wire transfer

As soon as we receive this, we will immediately confirm your booking by sending you a housing certificate.

You will be able to move into your room as soon as you arrive and as soon as the entry inspection & housing insurance formalities have been completed. Moversia’s system will enable you to sign your lease contract by email before you arrive in Clermont or before you move in.

3.

Post-Arrival Housing Search

Moversia can book you into temporary accommodation during the first few days of your stay if you prefer to visit available flats with us.

Some of you prefer to be able to visit available flats in person. In this case, we can arrange temporary accommodation for a few days and use this time to show you the offers available on the market.

However, based on recent experience due to the COVID-19 crisis, this is not the most effective way in finding somewhere to live, as by that time, many of the best offers will already be reserved. Clermont is a student city, and the French students will already have started looking for their accommodation as early as June, July and August. Therefore, it’s a good idea to start early, and even pay to retain a flat up to 1 – 2 months prior to your planned arrival.

Practical examples

We asked several students we’ve already welcomed how much they spend a month for their rent and contracts.

Monserrath Rios | Mexican student | ESC Business School

  • My rent is about 440 €
  • Electricity, gas and internet they are already included in the rent. The only thing is that I had to get a phone plan.
  • The security deposit was around 400 €
  • For housing insurance, it is 60 € a year or so.
  • I was expecting everything I have paid so far.

Alice Abasiisa | Ghanian student | Clermont Auvergne University

  • My rent is 450 € a month
  • I spend 80 € a month for electricity, gas and internet
  • The security deposit was 450 €
  • My home insurance is 24 € a year

Mariel Varela | Mexican student | ESC Business School

  • Rent : 330 €
  • Electricity, gas and internet included.
  • The security deposit was around 400 €
  • For housing insurance, it is 24 € a year with BNP Paribas bank
  • I wasn’t expecting to spend so much in Visa validation, CVEC…

Administrative formalities and more

Not only will we find you a place to live, we will also manage all the formalities included in the welcome package according to the type of chosen accommodation.

  • French Bank Account

    The first step to getting utilities connected and dealing with other French administrative formalities is opening a bank account

  • Electricity Contract

    Getting the best deal with an electricity company (heating system, lighting)

  • Gas Contract

    Getting the best deal with a gas company (heating system, hot water, gas hotplates)

  • Internet Contract

    Finding the right Internet provider (if not included with the rental)

  • Housing Insurance

    A legal requirement. You cannot move into your accommodation without this.

Please note that any extra charges including insurance or getting an internet, electricity or gas installed or connected are not included in our service fee.
(Housing insurance will cost you around 30 € per year for single accommodation (studio).

Feedback from our previous students

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Alexa D.

“Moversia made finding accommodation and other procedures much easier. Communication was efficient and they offered me great support throughout the entire process”

From Mexico

Bachelor in International Management, ESC Business School

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Jane L.

“Being an international student, it was not easy to find the ‘perfect’ accomodation and dealt with all the paperworks. Fortunately, Moversia was there to help! They were very patient dealing with me and gave me loads of options for me. Not only for accomodation, Moversia also helped me for the bank account opening, picking me up at the train station, and other problems. They are very responsive and I highly recommend Moversia so you will not get stressed out all by yourself!”

From Indonesia

MSC. in International Commerce & Digital Marketing, ESC Business School

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Favour A.

« Moversia helped me get accommodation before I arrived in Clermont-Ferrand. They have been a great guide through all the administrative procedures in France. They have helped give me some certainty in these uncertain times. »

From Nigeria

MSC. In Project Management, ESC Business School

Mikkel K.

“Moving to a stranger country brings a lot of things to take care of, one of those things is accommodation. Moversia made it easy for me, because they took care of almost everything so I could focus on some of all the other things I needed to take care of. Moversia is easy to use and they can help you if you have any problems, which is a pretty good thing when you move to a country where a lot of the citizens doesn’t speak English”

From Denmark

Bachelor in International Management, ESC Business School

The City of Clermont

Clermont-Ferrand is the 4th largest city in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and is the very first French city to join the UNESCO Learning City Network due to its large population of students and researchers. A quarter of the municipal population is comprised of students (40,000 students and 6,000 researchers for 145,000 inhabitants).

Clermont-Ferrand is more widely known as home of the corporate headquarters of the Michelin tyre company founded over 100 years ago, and as host of the International Short Film Festival, one of the world’s leading international festivals for short films. Clermont is also considered as one of top French cities due to the high quality of life. The city is close to the ‘Chaîne des Puys’ national park, classed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2018.

Education

Education is an important factor in the economy of Clermont-Ferrand. The University of Clermont Auvergne (formed from a merger between the two main universities Université Blaise Pascal and Université d’Auvergne), has a total student population of over 37,000 along with university faculty and staff.

The ESC Clermont Business School, created in 1919, is one of the top French Business and Management Schools. With around 1,000 students SIGMA Clermont is the city’s largest graduate school of engineering. You can also study Architecture, Arts or Agronomics in Clermont’s renowned schools.

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Culture & sport

Clermont is one of the oldest cities of France. Along with its highly distinctive black lava stone Gothic Cathedral, Clermont-Ferrand’s most famous site includes the public square, Place de Jaude, on which stands a large statue of Vercingetorix. If you prefer Nature, the Chaînes des Puys offers a large range of outings, activities and marvelous landscapes.

Clermont can offer you plenty of cultural activities (opera, theatre, concert halls, museums, art galleries, cinemas…) and events.

Finally, the city is brimming with restaurants and gourmet spots to delight your taste buds!

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Access & transportation

The main railway station has connections to Paris and several regional destinations: Lyon, Moulins via Vichy, Le Puy-en-Velay, Aurillac, Nîmes, Issoire, Montluçon and Thiers.

The motorway A71 connects Clermont-Ferrand with Orléans and Bourges, the A75 with Montpellier and the A89 with Bordeaux, Lyon, and Saint-Étienne (A72). CFE airport also offers domestic flights.

Inside the city, Clermont-Ferrand offers a public transport service through its metropolitan area with one tramway and several bus lines.

Get in touch with us

We have a long-standing experience of welcoming people in Clermont-Ferrand.
Contact our English and Spanish-speaking team to learn more and find out how we can help you.