Narva has few apartments to offer incoming teachers

Narva's schools and kindergartens will need almost 100 new teachers this year in order to meet Estonian-language requirements. However, as the city currently has few vacant apartments available, incoming teachers will have to rely on dormitories or find accommodation on their own.
The municipality is hoping to find new teachers from the local area, as housing even a few dozen arrivals will be a big challenge for Narva. A few months before the start of the next school year, consideration is also been given to the idea of opening a dormitory for teachers in an old polyclinic building.
"We're looking at one of our empty buildings for a possible renovation. We ourselves are looking for somewhere between 15 and 20 decent rooms with a shower, toilet and the possibility to make coffee, a place to stay while working," said Narva Mayor Jaan Toots (Center).
If the city itself has no vacant apartments, it is still possible to find accommodation in Narva within a couple of days. The main issue is the quality.
"It's usually a two-bedroom khrushchevka (apartment blocks built en masse across the Soviet Union after World War II during Premier Nikita Khrushchev to solve housing shortage – ed.) in the city center. Usually people who come to Narva want a better quality living space, high ceilings and good quality renovations. It's a very difficult choice," said Sergei Gorlatš, head of real estate company Trianon.
Teacher Kätlin Jürna, who moved from Tallinn to work in Narva, said that a nice apartment does not necessarily have to be one that is modern or newly renovated. She bought an apartment in a 150-year-old wooden house in the city's Kreenholm district and is happy with her choice.
"My husband and I are definitely romantics, so when we're choosing an apartment, we don't necessarily look for the newest kitchen or furniture, but instead we look at the layout of the apartment and how much light there is. We don't like plaster on the walls, for example. It seems to me that people still have that romantic spirit," said Jürna.
According to real estate agents, teachers arriving in Narva prefer to rent or buy apartments in either the Old Town or Kreenholm areas of the city, where there are fewer typical properties and also a more interesting urban environment.
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Editor: Marko Tooming, Michael Cole