New to milan and need advice,

Hello and welcome on board WhiteHeart

I hope you will make many contacts soon
For your accommodation i would suggest you to post an advert in Milan classifieds under Accommodation> Flats for rent!

Good luck
Armand

Hi

Straight to your question, for apartments go to bakeka.it or trovocasa.it. Try to rent directly with the owner as real estate agents charge an upfront fee to the tenant equivalent of 10-15% of the anual rent plus tax (10% I think). Also you have to pay 3 months of rent as deposit plus the first month of rent. So it is a lot of cash in one go.  Rent is paid monthly the first week of the month.

I have noticed that italians prefer contact by phone than by email. If you find a place you like, get somebody to call for you to arrange a inspection. You still can try by email but if you don't get an answer in 24 hours , I suggest to call the person.

Monolocale means a studio, bilocale means a living area and a bedroom. Most apartments have concierge and the rental includes hot water, sometimes heating (centralizado) or not (autonomo.

I think the easiest is to live near a subway (Metro) line. Via Monte Grappa is near Metro station Garibaldi, which is the Green Line, so try to find places around the Green Metro Line or in the connecting one, which is the Blue Line. 

Milan is a pretty small city if you compare with London or Madrid, so nothing is really too far away. 

As soon as you arrive you have to let the Police know you are here and apply to a Permesso di Soggorno. Be prepared to a lot of burocracy, it is very slow, inefficient and nobody is responsible for anything or anything they say. If you want to open a bank account you will also need a Codice Fiscale which is a tax number and it is easier to get than the Permesso di Soggorno.  I hope your work will help you with everything. 

The banking system is from another decade,so if you have a credit card from your own country, keep it because it is really hard to get a decent credit card.  Be aware that in some banks they put "limits" in your debit card as how much money you can spend, ironically, from your own money. 

It is a safe city and milaneses are quiet people, I haven't seen anybody drunk yet! My favourite is the Aperitivo time, where in any bar you buy a drink and you can it as much as you want of a buffett of food. It's great!

I hope that helps and if you have more questions, I am more than happy to answer them.

cheers and good luck.