Where can you find temporary housing during a renovation?

Your home is about to be opened up: a new bathroom, insulation, maybe everything at once. The contractor has a start date, but where will you sleep, cook and work while the walls come down? And what if the works overrun?

Where can you find temporary housing during a renovation?

Temporary housing during a renovation comes in five forms. You can stay at home, move in with family, put a unit on your land, take a short lease or rent a furnished apartment. The right one depends on how long the works last and how much of your home becomes unusable. This guide is part of our series on living in Antwerp.

Temporary housing during a renovation: the options compared

If you are unsure how a lease differs from a stay, read our guide to a short-term lease or furnished stay.

How do you plan temporary housing during your renovation?

Plan temporary housing during your renovation as soon as the contractor gives a start date, not a week before. Start from the phases in which your home is truly unliveable: no water, no kitchen, an open roof or a fresh screed floor.

1. Ask the contractor which phases make the house unliveable. That is often only part of the total works.
2. Build in a buffer. Weather, deliveries and surprises in old walls can push dates back. Choose a solution where you can move your dates.
3. Stay close to home. You will want to visit the site, and the children still need to get to the same school.
4. Think about your belongings. What can’t come with you goes into a closed room, to family or into storage.
5. Count what you pay twice. Ask whether electricity, heating and water are included, because your own home keeps using energy too.

Tip

Ask your contractor for a written schedule per phase. It shows at once whether you need somewhere to live for three weeks or three months.

What happens to your registered address during a renovation?

Your registered address usually stays at the home you are renovating. Stad Antwerpen explains the rule for an absence of at least 3 months and at most 1 year. In that case you report a temporary absence. You then stay registered at your address (stad Antwerpen).

The condition is that nobody else moves in instead of you. You also keep your interests at the address, so you can return at any time. According to the city, you can request the absence for up to 1 year and extend it once, by up to 1 year.

Vlaanderen.be says the same in general terms. You report a temporary absence to the civil affairs office of your municipality, and your main residence does not change (Vlaanderen.be). If you live outside Antwerp, check how your own municipality handles it.

That is why a furnished stay fits a renovation well. Address registration is not possible at Hoost, but you don’t need it: your official address stays at home. Our guide to registering your address in Antwerp explains the rules in more detail.

Do you have to renovate because of the Flemish renovation obligation?

You may, if you recently bought a home with a poor energy label. Since 1 January 2023, Flanders has a renovation obligation for buyers of a house or apartment with EPC label E or F. The new owner must renovate to label D or better.

According to Vlaanderen.be, you have 6 years after the deed; the period was extended from 5 to 6 years. The target stays label D (renovation obligation on Vlaanderen.be). For many families that means major works, with a period of living elsewhere. Plan that period together with the renovation itself.

Furnished accommodation near your home in Antwerp South

Hoost has four furnished apartments in one building in Antwerp South, near Middelheim Park, for stays from 2 nights to 6 months per booking. If you are renovating in Antwerp South, Wilrijk, Hoboken or Berchem, you stay close to your site. Wilrijk is about 1.6 km away in a straight line, and Hoboken about 2.0 km.

Every apartment has a full kitchen, bed linen, towels, heating and a dedicated workspace with Ethernet. Electricity, heating and water are included, and no deposit is asked. The building has a shared washing machine and dryer. On longer stays, extra cleaning can be arranged roughly every two weeks, at extra cost.

For families there are three two-bedroom apartments, each for up to 4 people, and a cot and high chair on request. The first-floor apartment with terrace gives you some outdoor space while your own garden is a building site. Trams 2 and 6 stop near the building.

If the works overrun, you can change your dates when the new dates are available. Send us your schedule and we will look at it with you.

When Hoost is not the right choice

Hoost is not the right choice for every renovation, and it is better to know that up front.

• You have a pet. Pets are not allowed, also during a renovation.
• Your family is larger than 4 people and you want one apartment. Two apartments in the same building are possible, if both are free.
• The works last longer than 6 months and you want a single booking. A longer stay continues with a new booking.
• You need a parking space on site. There is none; P+R Olympiade and paid parking are nearby.
• You are renovating on the other side of the city. Somewhere closer to your site will be more practical.

Bridging the gap between selling and moving instead of renovating? Read our guide to bridging accommodation in Antwerp. For daily life in the city, see our guide on what living in Antwerp is like.