Short Stay Housing (SSH) and Sugar Homes contract termination

International students at the University of Groningen have the opportunity to organise the accommodation for their first year of study through Short Stay Housing (SSH) or Sugar Homes. These are two independent organizations, separate from University of Groningen. To facilitate international student accommodation, the University of Groningen has reserved some of the housing on offer with SSH and Sugar Homes. If any of these rooms and studios are rented out to a student, or if they are vacated early, they have to be paid for by the university. It is therefore only possible to terminate an SSH or Sugar Homes rental contract early in certain circumstances, and only if permission is received from the university.

What are your options?

You may file an SSH/Sugar Homes termination request only in the case of certain special circumstances which may include:

• Personal circumstances: pregnancy or serious medical condition of the tenant; serious, deteriorating medical conditions or death of a first-degree relative; moving out of accommodation due to medical necessity, if the housing organization in question does not offer a suitable alternative; compulsory education activities, such as on-location research projects or internships abroad, which prevent the student from living in their SSH or sugar Homes accommodation for more than six months
• Circumstances beyond control: generally, circumstances beyond control only occur if they are unforeseen. The university no longer regards the effects of the coronacrisis as such. (please view the explanation below)

It is only if corona-related conditions lead to a completely new, unforeseen situation, that the university might regard these as circumstances beyond control. This may occur, for example, if the institution has to completely stop teaching and stop all alternatives, prior to the end of the rental contract.

Students have had sufficient opportunity to decide whether or not to come to Groningen and although the current coronacrisis creates uncertainty, this does not justify the termination of an SSH or Sugar Homes contract due to personal circumstances.

Any request for premature cancellation of the rental contract due to personal circumstances should include documentary evidence in order to be assessed by University of Groningen.

What should you take into account?

The university can only assess whether you are dealing with personal circumstances as described above, and can only review documentary evidence. The university cannot assist you with complaints or questions related to living areas, rent payments, down payments for rent, or terms for terminating your contract. For those questions, please reach out to SSH or to Sugar Homes directly

Please note: The following (for example) are not considered valid reasons for early termination of a rental contract: Noise complaints, a long distance between the accommodation and campus, problems with housemates, complaints about the accommodation, onsite extra curricular activities (this is a personal choice) or having to finding new accommodation earlier than planned. In the case of (medical) issues, questions or complaints, a solution is often possible via SSH or sugar Homes. Please contact the Housing Officer for your accommodation.

What should you do?

If you have any issues, complaints or questions, please reach out to your accommodation’s Housing Officer in the first instance to inquire about your options.

Has the Housing Officer referred you back to university and are you dealing with personal circumstances? Please send an email to university at HousingUG@rug.nl.