Calling a landlord in Polish: a call script and phrasebook
A call about a listing fits into seven steps: say hello and name the listing, warn that your Polish is basic, check the flat is still free, ask for the full price, check the conditions, book a viewing, and ask for a text message confirming it all. Each step below has the Polish phrase and an English translation.
You don't need to speak Polish well to get through this. You need about a dozen phrases, a pen, and the nerve to say "slower, please".
How to pronounce the phrases
A short key is more useful than a respelling of every line. Polish stress almost always falls on the second-to-last syllable.
| Polish | Sounds roughly like |
|---|---|
| ł | w in "wet" |
| w | v |
| sz | sh |
| cz | ch in "church" |
| rz, ż | s in "pleasure" |
| ś, si | a soft "sh" |
| ć, ci | a soft "ch" |
| dzi, dź | a soft "j" |
| ch | h, a bit throatier |
| y | i in "bit" |
| j | y in "yes" |
| ą | "on" (nasal) |
| ę | "en" (nasal); at the end of a word, close to "e" |
So Dzień dobry comes out roughly as "jen DOB-ri", and Czy jest prowizja? as "chi yest pro-VEEZ-ya?".
Before you call: two minutes of prep
- Open the listing and write down the address, the price and what the price says it includes: czynsz, "+ opłaty", media, kaucja.
- Mark what's missing. Those are your questions. Our guide to the full cost of renting in Warsaw explains each line.
- Have a pen ready. Numbers are easy to mishear, which is why step 7 asks for a text message.
The call, step by step
1. Greeting and the listing
- Dzień dobry.
- English: Hello (literally "good day").
- Dzwonię w sprawie ogłoszenia o mieszkaniu na ulicy …
- English: I'm calling about the listing for the flat on … Street.
- Czy rozmawiam z właścicielem?
- English: Am I speaking to the owner?
2. Flag your Polish
The other person will usually slow down and simplify. It's a normal thing to ask.
- Przepraszam, mówię słabo po polsku.
- English: Sorry, my Polish is weak.
- Czy może pan / pani mówić wolniej?
- English: Could you speak more slowly? (pan to a man, pani to a woman)
- Czy może pan / pani powtórzyć?
- English: Could you repeat that?
- Czy możemy rozmawiać po angielsku?
- English: Could we speak English?
3. Is it still available?
- Czy mieszkanie jest nadal dostępne?
- English: Is the flat still available?
- Od kiedy jest wolne?
- English: From when is it free?
- Na jak długo jest umowa?
- English: How long is the lease?
4. The full price
This is the part that matters most. The headline price often leaves out the admin fee and utilities.
- Ile wynosi czynsz administracyjny?
- English: How much is the admin fee (czynsz administracyjny)?
- Co wchodzi w czynsz administracyjny?
- English: What does it include?
- Czy media są w cenie?
- English: Are utilities included in the price?
- Ile wynoszą media?
- English: How much are the utilities?
- Jaka jest kaucja?
- English: How much is the deposit?
- Czy kaucja jest zwrotna?
- English: Is the deposit refundable?
- Czy jest prowizja?
- English: Is there an agency fee?
5. Conditions
- Czy można mieszkać z kotem / z psem?
- English: Can I live there with a cat / a dog?
- Czy mogę się zameldować?
- English: Can I register my address there?
- Czy umowa będzie na piśmie?
- English: Will the lease be in writing?
- Mam umowę o pracę.
- English: I have an employment contract.
On address registration (zameldowanie): if you need it, the owner or another person with legal title to the flat must confirm on the office form that you live there. Deadlines and rules for foreigners depend on your citizenship; the gov.pl page on temporary registration sets them out [1]. So it's worth asking before you sign.
6. The viewing
- Kiedy mogę obejrzeć mieszkanie?
- English: When can I see the flat?
- Czy pasuje jutro o osiemnastej?
- English: Does tomorrow at 6 pm work?
- Poproszę adres i numer mieszkania.
- English: Could I have the address and the flat number, please?
7. Confirmation and goodbye
- Czy może pan / pani to napisać SMS-em?
- English: Could you send me that by text?
- Dziękuję, do widzenia.
- English: Thank you, goodbye.
Asking for the address, time and amounts by text does two jobs: you won't mishear the numbers, and you keep a written record of what was agreed.
What you'll probably hear
- Tak, jest wolne.
- Meaning: Yes, it's free.
- Już nieaktualne. / Już wynajęte.
- Meaning: No longer available. / Already let.
- Od zaraz.
- Meaning: Available right away.
- Kaucja w wysokości jednego czynszu.
- Meaning: A deposit of one month's rent.
- Media według zużycia.
- Meaning: Utilities by usage.
- Proszę napisać SMS-a.
- Meaning: Please send a text.
- Oddzwonię.
- Meaning: I'll call you back.
Numbers by ear
Amounts are easier to get by text, but a few words are worth recognising: tysiąc (1,000), dwa tysiące (2,000), trzy tysiące (3,000), pięćset (500), sto (100), złotych (złoty).
After the call
Write the answers down straight away and mark each amount as known, estimated ("about") or unknown. Anything unknown is a reason to call back or send a message.
If you were rushed, asked to pay a reservation fee before a viewing, or the person won't meet you at the flat, stop and go through our rental scam checklist.
These are the calls we're teaching RentalAgent to make. It's an AI assistant for finding a rental in Warsaw that we're preparing: when you explicitly ask it to, it's meant to call landlords in Polish, tell the landlord that it's an AI assistant, ask these questions and show you the answers in translation. Early-access sign-up is open; until then, the phrasebook above is yours to use.
Sources
- Zamelduj się na pobyt czasowy (dla cudzoziemców), gov.pl, accessed 23/09/2026
- AI rental search in Warsaw — RentalAgent, rentalagent.pl, accessed 23/09/2026