The rental contract is a crucial document that controls all details of the rental relationship. Once it is signed by you and your proprietor or landlady, you need to pay the deposit and the very first month's rent.

All conditions and contracts are taped in composing in the rental contract. This is the only way they are lawfully binding. This uses, for instance, to the start date of the lease, completion of the lease, the expense of rent, the supplementary costs, and the deposit. Regulations on waste separation and rules and regulations must also be included in the agreement. Before signing the contract, it is common for landlords and residential or commercial property managers to request particular documents (e.g., evidence of earnings, an employment agreement, evidence of enough funds, a residence permit). In return, the property manager or landlady must offer an energy certificate.

Mandatory Information in the Lease

Make sure that the property owner's address remains in the lease. Your name ought to also be complete and right as only the person named in the rental agreement is entitled to the apartment or condo. In addition, the size of the apartment or condo must be stated. Note that rooms less than 2 meters high do not count as complete living area. Balconies or balconies are likewise just calculated with half their actual size. Purely usable locations, such as basement or attic rooms, are formally ruled out living area. However, it is necessary that these rooms are correctly listed in the contract. Such information might be required if you intend on living in Germany with your family as there are legal regulations regarding the size of the house depending on the variety of people in the household.

Determination of Rights and Obligations

If you wish to sublet your apartment or condo or utilize it commercially, you should consist of that details in the contract. Keeping pet dogs and cats is likewise allowed only when particularly pointed out in the contract. Small animals, such as fish, birds, hamsters, and guinea pigs, are omitted from this guideline. If tasks, such as stairwell cleaning or winter upkeep, are not outsourced, they are generally shared among the renters. This must likewise be kept in mind in the rental agreement, so you can see if you have to take obligation for such tasks. In principle, the property manager or landlady is accountable for all repair work in the apartment or condo. However, the lease can consist of a contract that you will take care of small repairs yourself. However, particular policies in some cases made by property owners or landladies, such as limiting you to just paint the walls a specific color, are not allowed and are, therefore, invalid, even if they are in the lease.

Lease Term and Rent Increases

As a guideline, rental agreements are for an indefinite duration. A time limit is only permissible if a reason is mentioned in the contract, for instance, the landlord's own requirements. If there is no other reason for termination, you have a notice duration of 3 months. Also check the agreement to see if there is an arrangement to graduated ren [ST(3] t. Graduated rent means that the rent is automatically increased by a specific amount on fixed dates. Rent might only increase as soon as every twelve months and by a maximum of 20 percent within 3 years. Rent should comply with the local comparative lease.

What to Do after the Rental Contract Is Signed

Discuss the precise move-in date with your property owner or landlady. Please note that if the day you move in falls on a public holiday, there may be changes to the general public transport timetable, and this may impact your arrival. Keys are typically only turned over on weekdays, especially in student residences. When you move in and out, a procedure about the condition of the house will be drawn up in which all damages will be listed. If you do not note all the damages to your landlord/landlady when getting the keys, you should report them within 2 week or you will responsible for them!

Need More Information?

On the site of the German Tenants' Association (Deutscher Mieterbund), you can find all details on the topic of rental agreements. The Studierendenwerk Erlangen-Nürnberg likewise offers a short summary of tenancy law particularly for students.

Avoid Hidden Expenses: These Are the Costs You Will Need To Pay in Addition to the Rent

In Germany, there are 3 types of rental expenses: cold lease, warm lease, and extensive rent. On top of that, there are a few extra costs to keep in mind. Sounds complicated? We discuss the most important terms and additional costs below.

When you rent a residential or commercial property, you pay to have the apartment or condo or room offered to you. This amount is called cold rent. In addition to the expenses for the room itself, there are constantly additional expenses, such as water intake, janitorial service, trash collection, and particular taxes and fees. That's why you pay the property owner or landlady a warm rent (this includes the cold rent with supplementary costs). The actual amount of the service charges is determined by your residential or commercial property management business in an annual service charge statement. This results in an extra payment for higher consumption or a repayment for lower consumption, depending upon your circumstance. Because of the constantly increasing rates, you should always have a small reserve for possible extra payments! In addition, the landlord or landlady can change your monthly advance payment for the service fee after the annual declaration.

Electricity Contracts and Other Costs

In your lease agreement you can read which ancilliary costs are included in the warm lease. Depending upon the kind of heating, an advance payment for the cost of your gas usage is normally included. However, if your apartment or condo has a floor heating system, you may have to take care of a gas supplier yourself and budget for extra monthly heating expenses. The option of electrical power service provider, on the other hand, is usually up to the renter. As such, extra electricity expenses should constantly be factored in. There are regional electrical power and gas suppliers, however their rates are frequently rather costly. It is advisable to inspect the suppliers on a comparison website and after that pick an appropriate tariff. Just like the supplementary expenses, a consumption-based costs is issued each year.

Additionally, every household in Germany needs to pay broadcasting costs. Registration occurs immediately after registration at the Residents' Registration Office. The month-to-month expense is presently 18.36 EUR. If you reside in a shared apartment, obviously only one individual should pay the fee. It's finest to discuss this straight with your roomies so that the registration can happen and you don't have any unnecessary costs!

One-time Costs

A one-time deposit is due at the beginning of the lease. You will discover the amount in your rental contract. It might not exceed three months' cold rent. The deposit must be paid at the beginning of the tenancy. However, you do not need to pay it all at once. You can pay it in three installations and spread it over the first three months' rent. The landlord or landlady should transfer the security deposit in a bank account and invest it with interest. After you leave, you will get the deposit back, consisting of interest, offered the apartment or condo was not harmed throughout your tenancy.

All-inclusive Rent

A relatively brand-new kind of lease is the complete lease. As the name suggests, all expenses (except the deposit) are consisted of in the rental cost. In addition, the real service fee are not determined according to usage but are fixed by contract. On the one hand, this has the advantage that you don't get a surprise at the end of the year when you get your utility bill. However, you then likewise have no possibility of decreasing the supplementary expenses through a mindful way of life.