Hi:

Which real estate agencies should I try first, when I arrive to Lausanne? I am looking for agencies that welcome foreigners and help them with finding a one bedroom apartment/ studio to rent in Lausanne.

If renting an apartment in Lausanne will take at least 2 weeks, then where should I live during the processes of finding accommodation? The hotels are too expensive so its really crazy to stay in a hotel for two weeks or longer. Can any body suggest an affordable alternative?

I can not do the flat share or room share options because one of my parents will be accompanying me. I need an independent accommodation.

I have found several apartments in homegate.ch and even e-mailed them but no reply

e-mailing is not very effective, in my experience, as far as looking for flats goes. try calling them, as soon as you see something that interests you.
best of luck

Got to this page, and click on the pdf marked "List of furnished houses and flats for rent", most of these places are available by the week or month. Hopefully you'll then find something temporary.

Normal time-frame to find a permanent apartment is 2-6 weeks. Lots of work and/or luck is involved. Here's a brief overview:
1. Get all of the paperwork that you'll need for an application (the rental agencies should be able to tell you what you need.
2. Call places as soon as they are advertised and schedule a viewing as quickly as possible.
3. If the place is at all decent, make an application.
4. Repeat steps #2 and #3 30+ times and you might be lucky.

If you have a job that pays you a huge amount of money then you may be able to repeat steps 2 and 3 fewer times, and you may be able to be more picky about which places you apply for. If one of your new colleagues is connected to someone in a rental agency in any way, then try to use this to your advantage. Apply for multiple places at the same time (a lot of the time, the agency will take one or more weeks to reach a decision).