I'm a simple emigrant and I'll move into a new apartment soon

In previous posts (one and two) I wrote about the initial stages of searching for housing, and now I'll explain how the process proceeds from here. If among a pile of rejections, someone finally invited you to a viewing, don't rush to celebrate. Most likely, when you arrive, there will be either a 15-minute viewing window, because others will come after you, or there will already be a crowd of other interested people. In the most 'German' cases you'll be met by a perfectly formed queue of people who act strictly by the plan: in such a line even grandmas from the MFC have to wait patiently. Meeting the landlord at this stage is rare; mostly it's agents or current tenants. Next, so that the owner also learns what a wonderful person you are, and can choose who will live in his quarters, you need to send to him a personal information form, a German ID, a pay slip for the last three months, and Schufa. This is the strangest document! There is an example of it in the picture. Schufa is something like a credit history, only it contains broader information about how "reliable" you are. The strangest thing is that it's a private company, which for some unknown reasons to me has access to a huge pile of personal data related to bank accounts, debts, loans, and even accounts in online shops. Schufa can be requested for free once a year; at other times it costs 30 euros. Moreover, they also try to pressure you, saying that the free Schufa has too much personal information, it's better to order the paid one, we'll blur everything for you there. In short, in a country where privacy laws are enforced, there is such a private Schufa that you need to provide in many places. Worse still is the obligation to have the tenants' surnames on the building’s intercom if you want your mail to reach you. And what strange documents did you have to provide to move into an apartment? #useful