Woman throws fake money around in search for Stockholm apartment

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- A U.S. woman studying in Sweden said she spread fake 500-kronor ($76.74) bills around Stockholm to draw attention to her fruitless apartment hunt.

Madelene Dorodny, 22, a digital media student at Stockholm's Hyper Island, said she is seeking a new apartment after her landlord upped her rent by $305 per month, but the search has been difficult, The Local.se reported Wednesday.

"I've tried [website] Blocket two or three times, but nobody pays attention when you're a foreign student. All you get offered is a place in the outer suburbs for 12,000 kronor [$1,841] a month," Dorodny said.

Dorodny said she printed out dozens of pieces of paper that appear to be rolled-up 500 kronor notes but open to reveal her ad seeking new housing.

"You may be disappointed that you didn't find real money, but I'm disappointed that I'm 'throwing away money' that I don't have every month on apartments," the ad reads.

Dorodny said she spread the fake money around various locations in the Sodermalm district and she plans to spread them in other districts in the coming days.

"I just hope the city doesn't get angry at me," she said. "But desperate times call for desperate measures."