The swap that changed our lives

Stuck in the wrong end of the city

I still remember the feeling of waking up on Monday morning in our apartment in Hvidovre. The alarm rang at 5:30, and I already had a headache just thinking about the day ahead.

Not because I hated my job - I actually loved my position as a nurse at Rigshospitalet. No, it was the commute that was killing me. Every single day: Bus to Hvidovre Station, S-train to Nørreport, metro to Trianglen, and then a ten-minute walk. An hour and a half each way, if everything went well. And it rarely did.

My husband Thomas worked from home, so the location didn't matter to him. But for me, the daily nightmare was destroying more than just my mood.

How did we end up in Hvidovre?

We moved to Hvidovre in 2019, shortly after we got married. It was what we could afford at the time - a nice 3-room apartment in a quiet area with reasonable rent. We thought it was temporary. That we would soon find something closer to the city.

But the years went by, and "temporary" became permanent. Prices in København kept rising. The waiting lists were endless. And we had grown fond of our apartment, even though the location was wrong.

So we stayed. And I commuted. Three hours a day, five days a week, for over four years.

The turning point

In November 2024, I came home from a particularly brutal shift. There had been delays on the S-train, and the journey had taken two hours. I was so tired that I cried on the bus home from the station.

That evening, Thomas said something I'll never forget: "We have to change something. This can't go on."

He was right. The commute was affecting everything. My health, our relationship, my quality of life. I was too tired to see friends, too exhausted to exercise, too burnt out to properly enjoy the weekends.

But what could we do? We had looked at everything. Rents on Østerbro were double what we were paying. And buying was completely unrealistic.

When home swapping came up

It was Thomas's mother who mentioned it. She had read an article about home swapping and sent it to us. I dismissed it at first - it sounded too good to be true. But Thomas was curious and started looking into it.

It turned out that home swapping was a perfectly real option. And the best part: We had lived in our apartment for over five years, so we met the legal requirements.

We created a profile on HomeSwap straight away. I wrote honestly about our situation: Good apartment in Hvidovre, looking for something on Østerbro or nearby due to work. I wasn't sure anyone would be interested - who would swap a central location for Hvidovre?

Søren and Lise from Østerbro

The response came faster than expected. Søren and Lise were a couple in their 50s who had lived on Østerbro for 20 years. They were preparing for retirement and dreaming of more peace and nature. Their apartment on Classensgade was perfect for us, but they found it too noisy and too expensive in rent.

When they saw our apartment in Hvidovre, they were thrilled. A quiet neighbourhood, a garden in the courtyard, close to Vestskoven. Exactly what they were looking for.

We met for the first time over coffee in their apartment. I remember standing by the window looking down at the street and thinking: "From here, I can cycle to work in twenty minutes."

From dream to reality

The process took about two months from first contact to getting the key. Both landlords approved the swap - ours because we had been good tenants, theirs because Søren and Lise had recommended us warmly.

The day we moved in, I cycled the route to the hospital just to try it. 22 minutes, door to door. I cried again, but this time with relief.

Life after the swap

It has now been eight months since we moved, and I can honestly say that the home swap changed our lives.

I have gained three hours a day back. Three hours I used to spend in public transport with thousands of other tired people. Now I use that time to run along the lakes in the morning, cook dinner in peace and quiet, or just sit in our new living room with a cup of tea.

My stress has dropped dramatically. I sleep better. Thomas and I have got our relationship back - we actually have time for each other again.

And work? It's the same as before, but it feels completely different. I arrive rested and ready instead of halfway burnt out.

Søren and Lise are doing well too

We still keep in touch with Søren and Lise. They love Hvidovre. The garden in the courtyard has become their new project, and they enjoy the peace they could never find on Østerbro.

"We should have done this ten years ago," Lise said last time we spoke. I know exactly what she means.

To you who are considering it

If you're stuck in the wrong home, I would encourage you to look into home swapping. It may seem unlikely that anyone would want to swap with you specifically, but the truth is that everyone has different needs.

Your "wrong" location might be someone else's dream. Your "too large" apartment might be perfect for a family. Your "too small" might be ideal for someone looking to downsize.

Read more about how to get started with home swapping in our complete guide for beginners.

Life is too short to waste three hours a day commuting. I learned that the hard way. But thanks to home swapping, I got those hours back.