Translators get to see a lot of rental aparment agreements. Big ones, small ones, fat ones, skinny ones, vague ones, long ones and horribly limiting ones. From unbelievable airing policies to old-fashioned quiet time specifications, from cold rent to warm water, here's what to expect when you're presented with an occupancy agreement for a flat in Germany. We're also pleased to help in more information if you really would like to know what you're entering into before you sign on the dotted line.

Almost half of the population in German leas, and up until recently, it's been easy to see why. Rental prices have been fairly low-cost and conditions extremely favourable for lessees. Yet as rent rates soar in the huge cities and as smart residential or commercial property developers discover the altering conditions, Red Tape Translation has observed rental agreements getting longer, stricter and scarier (not unlike the rental costs themselves!).

The components of a rental agreement

The agreement

The Mietvertrag (agreement/ rental arrangement/ lease) itself includes some crucial details such as

- the cost of your rent monthly

• whether increases are allowed, and if so, how they are regulated
• the period of the contract
• the deposit quantity
• description of the space and any additional fittings or pieces of furniture that may be included
• who is accountable for repairs and damages
• how to cancel or extend it
• remodelling work
• how to leave the apartment when you leave
• the house rules
• the handover report
  
  Typical clauses in German leases
  
  The cost of your rent
  
  There will be a Kaltmiete (cold rent - the basic cost of having the roofing over your head) and after that there will be Nebenkosten (additional charges) such as Betriebskosten (operating costs for the structure like waste disposal, stairwell cleaning) and Strom- und Heizkosten (heating and electricity expenses). Both the lease and the additional charges are generally computed or estimated according to the size of your house - the bigger it is, the more you pay. Gas, electrical power and telephone contracts are normally the renter's organization, and it may be possible to select your own service providers.
  
  Something to keep in mind: the landlord will typically estimate the charges in advance and deduct them monthly. At the end of the year, you get a yearly declaration for running costs which exercises how much everything in fact DID expense. If you've paid excessive, you'll get the difference back. Utility agreements typically work similarly: they estimate what you'll pay, subtract it monthly, and then refund or charge the difference at the end of a certain period.
  
  Rent increases
  
  There was a law presented in 2015 called the Mietpreisbremse to stop lease increases from getting out of control. It was embraced 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 average price for a leased apartment or condo in the location. But freshly built homes are not covered under this guideline, and modernisation procedures likewise offer landlords wiggle space to increase the price. Tip: Discover how much the previous occupant paid, even if you have actually currently signed the rental contract. A proprietor can't increase the price by more than 10% of what the previous tenant was paying (unless they do some modernisation that increases the value of the flat). If needed, you could sign the agreement to protect the flat and THEN chase up the proprietor to get your rent lowered (potentially with some legal support).
  
  Staffelmiete (stepped rent) implies that the rent increases every year in line with inflation and the increases are locked in for the next few years. There is no specific limitation here - the boosts may be locked in for the next 3 or 5 or ten years. If you're signing one of these, keep an eye out for the length of time your commitment is before you can cancel - up to 4 years is lawfully permissible. They can't increase your lease for at least one year from finalizing.
  
  The duration of the lease
  
  It may be a fixed-term agreement or it will be concluded for an endless duration. You might get a fixed-term contract if the landlord is planning to use the home themselves later on down the track, or if it is furnished. Fixed-term agreements can be difficult to break early, so you'll be liable to inhabit the location for the whole term, even if you want to leave early, unless you can find an appropriate replacement renter and your property owner consents to this.
  
  The Kaution (Deposit)
  
  Landlords can ask you for 3 months cold rent as a down payment. The property manager has to keep this money safely in an escrow account separated from his/her personal financial resources. If the cash accrues interest, the interest belongs to the renter and needs to be paid when they abandon. It's not uncommon to hear expats questioning how to get their deposit back when they have actually left the apartment, and being surprised that it takes months. The proprietor has six months to return the deposit to you after you vacate, plus any interest the sum accumulated, minus any impressive debts for which you might be liable, state for damages to the residential or commercial property or due to rent arrears. As appealing as it may be, you can get into problem if you just withhold your last 2 warm rental payments and tell your property manager to "keep the deposit".
  
  You'll discover a good and very extensive guide to rental deposits at All About Berlin.
  
  Kündigung (Termination)
  
  The statutory notice period for terminating rental contracts as an occupant is 3 months. The longer you've resided in the home, the more discover your landlord needs to give you if they need you to vacate: three months if you have actually been there for fewer than five years, six months if you've been there for fewer than 8 years, up to an optimum of 9 months notice.
  
  Provision (Commission)
  
  You do not have to pay the broker, realty representative or person offering you a rental flat a commission anymore - because 2015, this has actually been prohibited. Since the need for rental residential or commercial properties is so high in huge cities, plenty of people want to disregard and pay a commission anyway to be favoured as an occupant.
  
  Housing regulations
  
  These govern the behaviour within the structure and treatment of the residential or commercial property. You'll typically discover them held up on the wall inside the structure somewhere. Typical directions to be discovered in your home guidelines: whether you are enabled to have a clothes dryer in the house, when you are not permitted to make noise, whether you can keep pets, how to air and heat your house correctly, how to use the bins correctly etc. They are well-known for being stringent and pedantic to the point of outrageous, but you're expected to follow them. Whether you get away with vacuuming on a Sunday in spite of the statutory "peaceful time" might depend upon how unwinded your neighbours are and whether they complain to the Hausverwaltung (housing administration).
  
  Operational expenses ordinance
  
  You might get some excerpts from the Operational Costs Ordinance connected to your rental contract - these govern how property owners can charge occupants for all the things to make the structure function.
  
  Übergabeprotokoll (Handover report)
  
  You and the representative/ landlord will inspect the apartment, and they will make notes of preexisting damages, repair work 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 also a great time to examine that the heating works, even in summertime. If the landlord has actually assured you repairs, make sure they were done or there's an appointment reserved to have them done and get them listed in the handover report.
  
  How can I get help with the fine print?
  
  I 'd more than happy to send you a quote to equate your whole rental contract. A 5-page rental contract may cost 200 Euros, a 20-page lease is most likely to set you back around 800-1000 Euros, depending upon how intricate it is. If this is not practical and you're under time pressure, send me the contract and I'll send you a quote for a consultation to go through the bottom lines personally or over Skype, for around half the cost of a written translation.
  
  Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Doing Business in Berlin, Transferring to Berlin, Moving to Munich Tagged With: contracts, guide, leasing
  
  Reader Interactions
  
  Comments
  
  1. Andreas Moser states
  
  January 25, 2019 at 11:32 pm
  
  I feel like this is the serious and more helpful variation to my rant about renting in Germany: https://andreasmoser.blog/2018/05/28/rental-contracts/
  
  January 26, 2019 at 9:07 am
  
  Yes! Yes! Thanks for connecting. I just translated two rental contracts recently, one had its own annex specifically for airing that stated airing 4 times a day for no longer than 5-10 minutes, emphasized that tilting wasn't excellent enough, the window needed to be open completely. It continued about not enabling the walls to get cold. There were even exclamation marks and even a "wie gesagt" occasionally.
  
  
  2. Heike Wheatly states
  
  June 21, 2020 at 10:03 pm
  
  Thank You for all of the great details. How would you tackle including a clause for Lifelong Living rights to the Rental Agreement? I own a home in Germany and my Stepmom currently lives there. Her agreement will be up next year but I wish to provide her lifelong living right.
  
  Thank You
  
  June 30, 2020 at 1:21 pm
  
  I am unsure, however here's a directory site of English-speaking legal representatives, in case you're in Berlin. Even if you're not, they might be happy to seek advice from by phone. Cheers, Kathleen.
  
  
  3. Brian Pendergast says
  
  September 1, 2020 at 3:23 pm
  
  Thank you for the info. Do you understand if it is legal to consist of furniture in the cost calculator of the Nebenkosten?
  
  September 9, 2020 at 10:40 pm
  
  I just did a fast check - property managers can add an extra cost for furniture, but there are limitations - you can charge 2% of the value of the furnishings however it assumes complete devaluation after ten years. So it depends upon just how much the furnishings expense and likewise how old the furniture is. E.g if the furnishings cost 5,000 EUR and was brand-new at the time of the occupancy, the property owner could charge 100 EUR each month. There is a formula however it's late and my brain hurts. Here's the site 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 find them all over the place. Just Google "Mietvertrag Vorlage".
  
  
  5. Christina G states
  
  March 15, 2021 at 1:57 pm
  
  We have a one year agreement/ lease with our flat. We are needed in the lease to give a 2 month notice to end. My question is, if we were to provide the two month notification and vacate before the end of the agreement term, are we still entitled to get our deposit back? And are we not needed to pay the remaining months lease? We are preparing to leave 2 months early, so 10 months of the 12 month contract to offer context.
  
  April 28, 2021 at 9:15 pm
  
  If you give two months notice, you can leave earlier, however youll still have to pay the 2 months completely. This is unless you can work out with your property manager and get something in writing, e.g. by finding a "Nachmieter" (new occupant) 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 do not owe any money, however don't anticipate 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 coverage are not stipulated on the operating costs in the rental agreement, are we obliged to pay for them?
  
  September 10, 2021 at 7:08 am
  
  It's uncommon to become aware of a renter being charged residential or commercial property tax and residential or commercial property insurance. Those are costs that the owner normally covers. Whether the owner then thinks about those two expenses when calculating the rental expense per square metre is another story, naturally. I don't understand whether the owner is entitled to include those things particularly in the operating expense or not. And if they are neither defined in the operating costs nor consisted of in your cold lease, I would discover it odd for you as the renter to then get those bills. I 'd suggest that you sign up with the Mieterverein in your city and inquire. Feel complimentary to report back, that is an odd one!
  
  
  7. Eunice states
  
  January 13, 2022 at 10:19 am
  
  Hi, my name is Eunice, I need a little aid, we found a home that we like but the agent told us that the landlord will give us the home if we consent to live there for the minimum of 3 years, so we inquired to decrease it the 3 years the agent said is the new law and if we must break it, they will take our deposit. My concern now is, which law is that or is the agent trying to force to sign to a long lease.
  
  Reply
  
  - Kathleen Parker states
  wikipedia.org
  February 23, 2022 at 4:13 pm
  
  Much to my surprise, this is allowable. Minimum rental terms can be approximately 4 years. Here's more info.