Switching from one Heka apartment to another

How to switch from one Heka apartment to another

Start by reading the prerequisites for switching apartments on the City of Helsinki website.   

There are three ways to apply for a change of apartments:  

• You can apply to the City of Helsinki for a switch to a Heka apartment that is becoming available. The application is valid for three months at a time, and you can renew it if your need to switch apartments continues. See the City of Helsinki website for more detailed instructions.   
• You can find a swap partner yourself via the Apartment Exchange Market. If you find a partner to swap apartments with, submit an application to the City of Helsinki for approval. See the City of Helsinki website for more detailed instructions.   
• You can apply to the City of Helsinki to switch to a Heka apartment that is becoming available and look for someone to swap with through the Apartment Exchange Market at the same time.    

One-third of the apartments at new Heka locations are reserved for existing Heka tenants looking to swap apartments.

 

If you receive an offer on an apartment that is becoming available  

Order an apartment inspection  

Order an apartment inspection from Heka as soon as you have received an initial apartment offer from the City of Helsinki and instructions for ordering the inspection. The apartment inspection is subject to a fee and valid for one year. Please note that, at the end of the month, it may take some time to get an inspection.  

Heka will provide the city with information about the apartment inspection. If the inspection reveals that there are significant shortcomings in the condition of the apartment, switching to the apartment is not possible. A new apartment inspection can be ordered no earlier than three months after the previous inspection, and a new fee is charged for it. Therefore, it is important that, before the inspection, you make an effort to repair any defects or deficiencies that you may have caused in the apartment during your stay. Use the apartment checklist to check the condition of your apartment.   

Please check the price of the apartment inspection on the Price List website.

Terminate your old lease agreement before signing a new one  

Even in cases of swapping apartments, the notice period is one calendar month. Furthermore, you can only sign a new lease after you have terminated the lease on your old apartment.  

If you find someone with whom you can swap apartments and if the relevant applications have been processed  

Order apartment inspections  

When the city has processed all the apartment applications of the households involved in the apartment swap and the swap form of the swap partners, the applicants will receive emails containing the instructions for ordering an apartment inspection. Please note that, at the end of the month, it may take some time to get an inspection.  

Once the approved inspection has been carried out, we will inform the City of Helsinki of the apartment inspections.   

If the inspection reveals that there are significant shortcomings in the condition of the apartment, switching to the apartment is not possible. A new apartment inspection can be ordered no earlier than three months after the previous inspection, and a new fee is charged for it. Therefore, it is important that, before the inspection, you make an effort to repair any defects or deficiencies that you may have caused in the apartment during your stay. Use the apartment checklist to check the condition of your apartment.  

Please check the price of the apartment inspection on the Price List website.

Provide the requested appendices  

If someone who is not living in the same apartment as you or in another Heka apartment is applying for an apartment with you, this person must deliver documents containing information about things such as income and taxation. The city will check the co-applicant’s credit details for rent arrears.  

Terminate your old lease agreements before signing a new one  

If your application for switching apartments is accepted, you will be notified primarily by email. In the email, you will be told the time by which you must contact Heka to arrange the switch. It is advisable to conclude any agreements as soon as the decision on switching apartments has been made.   

Even in cases of swapping apartments, the notice period is one calendar month.   

The new agreements can be signed only when all the parties involved in the swap have terminated their old lease agreements. Lease agreements can be terminated and signed online. If termination or signing online is not possible, we recommend that the swap partners visit Heka customer service at the same time. If necessary, the contracting party can also be represented by another person with a power of attorney.   

In apartment swaps, the apartments are not renovated when the apartments are swapped, but the partners in the swap receive each other’s apartments in the condition they are in at the time of the swap. Before swapping apartments it is advisable to agree with the current resident on viewing the apartment and to see the new apartment in person.   

Once the lease agreement for the new apartment has been signed, the swap cannot be cancelled.