Translators get to see a great deal of rental aparment contracts. Big ones, little ones, fat ones, slim ones, unclear ones, long ones and badly restrictive ones. From outrageous airing regulations to old quiet time specifications, from cold rent to warm water, here's what to expect when you exist with a tenancy agreement for a flat in Germany. We're also happy to help in more information if you really want to know what you're entering before you sign on the dotted line.

Almost half of the population in German rents, and up until just recently, it's been simple to see why. Rental costs have actually been relatively cheap and conditions very beneficial for lessees. Yet as rent prices skyrocket in the huge cities and as creative residential or commercial property designers discover the altering conditions, Red Tape Translation has actually noticed rental agreements getting longer, more stringent and scarier (not unlike the rental costs themselves!).

The parts of a rental agreement

The contract

The Mietvertrag (contract/ rental agreement/ lease) itself includes some vital info such as

- the expense of your rent each month
- whether increases are enabled, and if so, how they are managed
- the period of the agreement
- the deposit quantity
- description of the area and any additional fittings or pieces of furnishings that might be included
- who is accountable for repair work and damages
- how to cancel or extend it
- restoration work
- how to leave the apartment or condo when you leave
- the house guidelines
- the handover report

Typical provisions in German leases

The expense of your rent

There will be a Kaltmiete (cold lease - the basic cost of having the roofing system over your head) and then there will be Nebenkosten (extra charges) such as Betriebskosten (operating expense for the building like garbage disposal, stairwell cleansing) and Strom- und Heizkosten (heating and electrical power expenses). Both the rent and the additional charges are generally calculated or approximated according to the size of your home - the larger it is, the more you pay. Gas, electrical power and telephone agreements are normally the occupant's business, and it may be possible to select your own providers.

Something to keep in mind: the property manager will typically estimate the charges in advance and subtract them monthly. At the end of the year, you get an annual statement for running costs which works out just how much whatever really DID cost. If you have actually paid too much, you'll get the difference back. Utility contracts typically work likewise: they estimate what you'll pay, deduct it monthly, and then refund or charge the distinction at the end of a specific duration.

Rent increases

There was a law introduced in 2015 called the Mietpreisbremse to stop lease increases from leaving control. It was adopted in more than 300 German cities. Among the rules is that a new rental agreement can't demand lease of more than 10% of the typical price for a rented apartment in the location. But recently developed homes are not covered under this rule, and modernisation procedures likewise give property managers wiggle space to increase the price. Tip: Find out how much the previous tenant paid, even if you have actually already signed the rental agreement. A proprietor can't increase the price by more than 10% of what the previous renter was paying (unless they do some modernisation that increases the worth of the flat). If necessary, you might sign the contract to secure the flat and THEN go after up the landlord to get your lease decreased (possibly with some legal support).

Staffelmiete (stepped rent) suggests that the lease increases every year in line with inflation and the boosts are locked in for the next couple of years. There is no particular limit here - the boosts may be locked in for the next 3 or 5 or 10 years. If you're signing one of these, watch out for how long your commitment is before you can cancel - as much as 4 years is lawfully allowable. They can't increase your rent for a minimum of one year from signing.

The duration of the lease

It may be a fixed-term agreement or it will be concluded for a limitless period. You might get a fixed-term agreement if the proprietor is preparing to utilize the house themselves later on down the track, or if it is provided. Fixed-term agreements can be tough to break early, so you'll be accountable to inhabit the place for the whole term, even if you desire to leave early, unless you can discover an appropriate replacement tenant and your property owner consents to this.

The Kaution (Deposit)

Landlords can ask you for 3 months cold lease as a security deposit. The proprietor needs to store this money safely in an escrow account separated from his/her personal finances. If the cash accumulates interest, the interest comes from the tenant and must be paid when they vacate. It's not unusual to hear expats questioning how to get their deposit back once they have actually left the apartment or condo, and being shocked that it takes months. The proprietor has six months to return the deposit to you after you abandon, plus any interest the amount accrued, minus any arrearages for which you might be liable, say for damages to the residential or commercial property or due to rent defaults. As tempting as it may be, you can get into difficulty if you just keep your last 2 warm rental payments and inform your property manager to "keep the deposit".

You'll discover an excellent and really thorough guide to rental deposits at All About Berlin.

Kündigung (Termination)

The statutory notification period for ending rental contracts as a renter is 3 months. The longer you've resided in the home, the more notice your property owner needs to offer you if they require you to leave: three months if you have actually been there for less than 5 years, six months if you've been there for fewer than 8 years, up to an optimum of nine months notification.

Provision (Commission)

You don't have to pay the broker, realty agent or individual offering you a rental flat a commission anymore - because 2015, this has actually been unlawful. Since the need for rental residential or commercial properties is so high in big cities, plenty of individuals want to disregard and pay a commission anyhow to be favoured as an occupant.

Housing policies

These govern the behaviour within the structure and treatment of the residential or commercial property. You'll generally discover them held up on the wall inside the building somewhere. Typical instructions to be discovered in your house rules: whether you are allowed to have a clothes dryer in the home, when you are not allowed to make sounds, whether you can keep pets, how to air and heat your house correctly, how to utilize the bins correctly and so on. They are well-known for being stringent and pedantic to the point of ludicrous, but you're anticipated to follow them. Whether you get away with vacuuming on a Sunday regardless of the statutory "peaceful time" may depend on how unwinded your neighbours are and whether they grumble to the Hausverwaltung (housing administration).

Operational expenses ordinance

You may get some excerpts from the Operational Costs Ordinance connected to your rental contract - these govern how property managers can charge occupants for all the important things required to make the structure function.

Übergabeprotokoll (Handover report)

You and the agent/ landlord will check the house, and they will make notes of preexisting damages, repairs and the condition of the residential or commercial property. If you see a small hole in the wall, point it out, and they'll take down it. This is likewise an excellent time to inspect that the heating works, even in summer. If the landlord has actually guaranteed you repairs, ensure they were done or there's an appointment scheduled to have them done and get them listed in the handover report.

How can I get assist with the fine print?

I 'd enjoy to send you a quote to translate your whole rental agreement. A 5-page rental contract may cost 200 Euros, a 20-page lease is likely to set you back around 800-1000 Euros, depending upon how complicated it is. If this is not realistic and you're under time pressure, send me the agreement and I'll send you a quote for an appointment to go through the primary points personally or over Skype, for around half the cost of a composed translation.

Filed Under: Relocating To Germany, Doing Business in Berlin, Relocating to Berlin, Relocating To Munich Tagged With: contracts, guide, renting

Reader Interactions

Comments

1. Andreas Moser says

January 25, 2019 at 11:32 pm

I seem like this is the major and more useful version to my rant about leasing in Germany:
https://andreasmoser.blog/2018/05/28/rental-contracts/

January 26, 2019 at 9:07 am

Yes! Yes! Thanks for connecting. I simply equated two rental contracts recently, one had its own annex particularly for airing that stipulated airing 4 times a day for no longer than 5-10 minutes, stressed that tilting wasn't sufficient, the window had to be open completely. It went on and on about not allowing the walls to get cold. There were even exclamation marks and even a "wie gesagt" here and there.

2. Heike Wheatly states

June 21, 2020 at 10:03 pm

Thank You for all of the great details. How would you set about including a stipulation for Lifelong Living rights to the Rental Agreement? I own a home in Germany and my Stepmom currently lives there. Her contract will be up next year but I want to offer her lifelong living right.

Thank You

June 30, 2020 at 1:21 pm

I am unsure, however here's a directory of English-speaking attorneys, in case you remain in Berlin. Even if you're not, they may be happy to speak with by phone. Cheers, Kathleen.

3. Brian Pendergast says

September 1, 2020 at 3:23 pm

Thank you for the info. Do you know if it is legal to consist of furnishings in the expense calculator of the Nebenkosten?

September 9, 2020 at 10:40 pm

I simply did a quick check - landlords can add an additional cost for furnishings, however there are limitations - you can charge 2% of the worth of the furniture however it presumes complete depreciation after ten years. So it depends on how much the furnishings cost and also how old the furniture is. E.g if the furnishings cost 5,000 EUR and was new at the time of the tenancy, the proprietor could charge 100 EUR monthly. There is a formula however it's late and my brain harms. Here's the website I utilized.

4. Jasper says

March 7, 2021 at 10:00 pm

Hi Kathleen! Thank you for your efforts. I was questioning if there's a design template for the Mietvertrag?

April 28, 2021 at 9:19 pm

Oh you can discover them all over the place. Just Google "Mietvertrag Vorlage".

5. Christina G says

March 15, 2021 at 1:57 pm

We have a one year contract/ lease with our flat. We are required in the lease to provide a two month notice to end. My question is, if we were to give the 2 month notification and leave before completion of the contract term, are we still entitled to get our deposit back? And are we not needed to pay the staying months rent?
We are preparing to leave 2 months early, so 10 months of the 12 month agreement to offer context.

April 28, 2021 at 9:15 pm

If you give 2 months notice, you can move out sooner, but youll still have to pay the two months in full. This is unless you can work out with your property manager and get something in writing, e.g. by finding a "Nachmieter" (new tenant) to take control of those 2 months for you. You'll get your deposit back ultimately as long as everything is done contractually and you don't owe any money, however do not expect it to occur rapidly. It can take 6 months sometimes to see the cash.

6. Jody states

June 21, 2021 at 6:29 am

If the residential or commercial property land tax and residential or commercial property insurance are not stipulated on the operating expense in the rental contract, are we obliged to pay for them?

September 10, 2021 at 7:08 am

It's uncommon to hear of an occupant being charged residential or commercial property tax and residential or commercial property insurance. Those are expenses that the owner normally covers. Whether the owner then thinks about those 2 expenses when computing the rental expense per square metre is another story, obviously. I don't know whether the owner is entitled to consist of those things particularly in the operating expenses or not. And if they are neither specified in the operating expenses nor included in your cold lease, I would find it odd for you as the occupant to then get those costs. I 'd recommend that you join the Mieterverein in your area and ask them. Feel free to report back, that is an odd one!

7. Eunice states

January 13, 2022 at 10:19 am

Hi, my name is Eunice, I require a little help, we discovered an apartment or condo that we like but the representative told us that the proprietor will give us the house if we accept live there for the minimum of 3 years, so we asked them to decrease it the 3 years the representative stated is the new law and if we ought to break it, they will take our deposit. My concern now is, which law is that or is the agent attempting to require to sign to a long lease.

Reply

- Kathleen Parker says

February 23, 2022 at 4:13 pm

Much to my surprise, this is permissible. Minimum rental terms can be approximately 4 years. Here's more info.