Source: Pixabay
Student Accommodation in Finland
In Finland, student housing is commonly provided by the Finnish Student Housing Foundation (Suomen opiskelija-asuntosäätiö or SOA). SOA operates in 23 different cities across Finland and provides affordable housing options for students.
You can find all the SOA offices on their website at 
soa.fi.
The student housing options in Finland can vary from small shared apartments (solu, ie. dorm room) to large apartment buildings with private rooms and shared kitchen. Typically, students in Finland can rent a room in a shared apartment or a studio apartment that includes a small kitchen and a private bathroom. Shared apartments tend to be more affordable, but expect to pay more for your studio apartment.
One of the benefits of student housing in Finland is that the rent is often lower than the market price, and the rental agreements are usually flexible. But of course, usually you are expected to give one calendar month's notice, when leaving the apartment.
In some cases, the rent may also include electricity, water, and heating costs. In Finland, in many cases the internet is also included in the apartment, you may receive a free fixed internet line ranging from 2 mb - 50 mb in speed. You only need a wifi-modem to use it and contact the internet provider so they will open it to your name. (Yes, it still needs a contract, because they can provide you with additional services, if you want). You will get information about the possibility of the internet from your housing provider.
Source: Pixabay
Other options - housing companies
So what should you do if you have not been able to secure housing by September? For starters, you must have been looking for housing already during June or July. The earlier, the better.
Other than looking for housing on your own, you can team up with a friend or two and look for a larger apartment together. That way you have more alternatives for housing, as larger apartments generally attract less applicants.
There are plenty of other available options for finding housing and I will introduce you to the most common ones.
Source: Pixabay
Renting privately
Private individuals will rent out their apartments as well. Usually they require a deposit for one month, or two. Legally they cannot ask for more than 3 months rent as a deposit. You can look for apartments from the following websites:
Important to remember
When you move into an apartment in Finland, whether it is private, through a housing company or a students’ apartment, you are usually given a form to fill. On this form you can take notes of the general condition of the rooms. Be very specific. The form usually has to be filled within a week of moving to the property. Please also take photographs. Doing this ensures that you are not blamed for things that are already broken at the time you move in.
Eventually when you move out and if something is damaged, you and your landlord can easily check back on the notes and pictures, and see how the situation was when your tenancy started. During your tenancy, if something gets broken, you should not have any worries in regards to contacting the landlord and telling him about a broken toilet seat cover or anything for that matter. They should have no problem in replacing the broken items or negotiating with you if it was something you broke and they feel you should cover the cost.
Happy house-hunting!