You may need a short-term place to stay when you first arrive in Berkeley. Listed below are some options for temporary housing in or near the Berkeley area.
Cal Rentals
Cal Rentals has listings of local rentals and is available to students, faculty, staff and visiting scholars. Incoming visiting scholars can have access to this listing when they have an approved appointment from our office (Visiting Scholar and Postdoc Affairs Program). If your appointment has already begun and you have a CalNet ID, you can register by going to the following link and then pressing "Sign Up" under "UCB Students, Faculty and Staff". When you register, you should list your affiliation as "Faculty/Staff": https://och.berkeley.edu/registration
- If you are an incoming affiliate and do not yet have your CalNet ID, go to the following link to register and select "Guest Type" as "Incoming Faculty/Staff": https://och.berkeley.edu/registration/guest
- After registering, you will then be asked to provide proof of affiliation. To verify your affiliation, send an email to calrentals@berkeley.edu with your appointment dates, your affiliation (postdoc, visiting scholar, visiting student researcher), and a copy of your VSPA appointment letter that is automatically generated when your appointment has been approved by VSPA.
- Once your affiliation has been verified, you will be able to access Cal Rentals and browse its listings.
The Cal Rentals website has compiled useful information under a tab titled "Resources" that covers topics such as "Rental Housing Safety" to "When to Look".
Cal Rentals - Intersection Apartments (Single Postdocs & UCB Graduate Students Only)
NEW! 11/30/2021: Cal Housing has a new furnished housing option at the Intersection Apartments, an independent-living option for single graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. Located in Emeryville not far from the Bay, the building is only three miles from the UC Berkeley campus (about a 15-minute drive or 30-minute bus ride on AC Transit bus line Transbay F). Housing is available for the spring semester; apply now via the Cal Housing portal.
Postdocnet Listserv
Our office also maintains a mailing list (it is called the postdocnet listserv, but visiting scholars and landlords also subscribe to this list). Subscribers often post ads like furniture for sale, housemates wanted, or room/apartment available. You can subscribe by going to this link here. After subscribing to the listserv, you can receive postings from members that include landlords or send postings by simply emailing an announcement to postdocnet@lists.berkeley.edu
Craigslist Bay Area
This is a public listing site from people all over the Bay Area. It is widely used by landlords and property managers to advertise rental vacancies in and near Berkeley. Individuals also advertise furniture, household goods, and many other items they want to sell or give away. Please be aware that this is not a university-affiliated resource and to be wary of any scams.
Craigslist Bay Area
Sabbatical Homes
This is the go-to resource for visiting academics to see furnished rental advertisements near academic institutions world-wide. Here you will find the homes of UC Berkeley faculty who are going on sabbatical leave and other professionals who seek to rent to like-minded people coming to Berkeley to teach or do research. The typical rental is for a semester or an academic year, although many of the rental listings are for flexible periods.
Air BnB
Air BnB connects people who have spare rooms, entire apartments, or entire single-family homes with those who are looking for a place to stay and is particularly useful for in need of short-term housing accommodations. Some properties may be available for longer periods; to explore, set your ideal date parameters to see what, if any, rentals might be offered for the length of your stay.
VRBO
VRBO has more than 1500 short-term rentals in Berkeley at any given time. Prices start at around $90 per night, and condos and houses are popular options for a stay in Berkeley. Either way, you will find a rental for everyone's needs.
Courtyard Marriott (Richmond)
Days Inn (Pinole)
Extended Stay America (Oakland-Emeryville)
Extended Stay America (Richmond)
Hilton Garden Inn (Emeryville)
Hotel Mira Vista (El Cerrito)
Hyatt House (Emeryville)
Motel 6 (Pinole)
