Visiting Debi, our [rezidentz] member.

Debi, 23, graduated from a Digital Marketing master's in Paris and moved to Brussels in March 2022 — for a job opportunity, and for her Belgian boyfriend. She'd been to Brussels before, but living somewhere is different from visiting.

On choosing Rezidentz

'When I visited for the first time, it felt like home straight away,' she says. 'Not like a hotel. Not like a furnished box. Like somewhere I could actually live.' The terrace was a deciding factor — she works partly remotely, and morning coffee on a private terrace in the sun is something she'd missed in Paris.

On the Sainte Catherine neighbourhood

Debi chose Rezidentz Sainte Catherine not just for the apartment, but for the address. 'Sainte Catherine is one of those Brussels neighbourhoods that has everything within five minutes. Restaurants, bars, the park — and it's quiet at night because we're slightly off the main square.' Le Roi des Belges, a bar a short walk from the building, is a favourite.

On the pace of settling in

Moving to a new city at 23, without a pre-existing social network, could be isolating. 'I was busy with work from the start, which helped. And the apartment's location meant I was walking around the neighbourhood constantly — you get to know a city quickly when you live in its heart.'

She values her quiet apartment — the side-street location provides calm despite the central address — and uses the nearby park for morning walks. 'Amy Winehouse on headphones, park, coffee. That's the morning.'