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

All conditions and contracts are taped in writing in the rental contract. This is the only method they are legally binding. This applies, for instance, to the start date of the lease, completion of the lease, the cost of rent, the ancillary expenses, and the deposit. Regulations on waste separation and house rules should also be consisted of in the agreement. Before signing the contract, it prevails for proprietors and residential or commercial property managers to request for particular files (e.g., evidence of earnings, an employment agreement, proof of enough funds, a residence authorization). In return, the landlord or landlady should offer an energy certificate.

Mandatory Information in the Lease

Ensure that the proprietor's address is in the lease. Your name must also be total and appropriate as only the person named in the rental contract is entitled to the home. In addition, the size of the home need to be specified. Note that rooms less than 2 meters high do not count as full home. Balconies or terraces are likewise just determined with half their real size. Purely functional locations, such as basement or attic rooms, are formally ruled out living area. However, it is very important that these spaces are correctly noted in the contract. Such information may be needed if you intend on living in Germany with your family as there are legal regulations regarding the size of the house depending upon the number of individuals in the household.

Determination of Rights and Obligations

If you desire to sublet your home or utilize it commercially, you should consist of that info in the contract. Keeping pets and felines is likewise permitted only when specifically pointed out in the contract. Small animals, such as fish, birds, hamsters, and guinea pigs, are omitted from this policy. If jobs, such as stairwell cleaning or winter season maintenance, are not contracted out, they are typically shared amongst the renters. This must also be kept in mind in the rental contract, so you can see if you need to take obligation for such tasks. In principle, the property manager or landlady is accountable for all repairs in the house. However, the lease can include an agreement that you will look after small repairs yourself. However, certain guidelines often made by property owners or landladies, such as limiting you to only paint the walls a specific color, are not permitted and are, therefore, invalid, even if they remain in the lease.

Lease Term and Rent Increases

As a rule, rental arrangements are for an indefinite duration. A time frame is only acceptable if a reason is specified in the contract, for instance, the property owner's own requirements. If there is no other reason for termination, you have a notification duration of three months. Also check the contract to see if there is an arrangement to graduated ren [ST(3] t. Graduated lease indicates that the lease is automatically increased by a certain quantity on repaired dates. Rent may just increase when every twelve months and by an optimum of 20 percent within three years. Rent needs to abide by the local relative lease.

What to Do after the Rental Contract Is Signed

Discuss the precise move-in date with your property manager or landlady. Please note that if the day you move in falls on a public vacation, there might be modifications to the general public transportation schedule, and this might impact your arrival. Keys are generally only turned over on weekdays, specifically in trainee homes. When you move in and out, a procedure about the condition of the apartment will be drawn up in which all damages will be noted. If you do not note all the damages to your landlord/landlady when getting the keys, you must report them within 14 days or you will responsible for them!

Need More Information?

On the site of the German Tenants' Association (Deutscher Mieterbund), you can discover all details on the subject of rental contracts. The Studierendenwerk Erlangen-Nürnberg also offers a brief summary of tenancy law specifically 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 costs: cold rent, warm rent, and complete rent. On top of that, there are a couple of additional costs to remember. Sounds complicated? We discuss the most essential terms and extra expenses listed below.

When you lease a residential or commercial property, you pay to have the apartment or condo or space provided to you. This amount is called cold lease. In addition to the costs for the space itself, there are always extra expenses, such as water intake, janitorial service, garbage collection, and particular taxes and fees. That's why you pay the property owner or landlady a warm rent (this consists of the cold rent with ancillary expenses). The actual quantity of the service fee is determined by your residential or commercial property management business in an annual service charge declaration. This leads to an additional payment for higher usage or a repayment for lower consumption, depending on your situation. Because of the constantly rising rates, you must constantly have a small reserve for possible extra payments! In addition, the landlord or landlady can change your month-to-month advance payment for the service charges after the yearly declaration.

Electricity Contracts and Other Costs

In your lease contract you can check out which ancilliary expenses are consisted of in the warm lease. Depending upon the type of heating, an advance payment for the expense of your gas intake is normally included. However, if your house has a floor heater, you might have to look after a gas provider yourself and budget plan for extra regular monthly heating expenses. The option of electricity supplier, on the other hand, is usually as much as the renter. As such, extra electricity costs must always be factored in. There are local electricity and gas providers, however their rates are frequently quite pricey. It is a good idea to check the providers on a contrast portal and then choose on an ideal tariff. Similar to the supplementary costs, a consumption-based costs is released annually.

Additionally, every household in Germany needs to pay broadcasting fees. Registration happens immediately after registration at the Residents' Registration Office. The monthly cost is currently 18.36 EUR. If you reside in a shared home, obviously just one individual should pay the fee. It's best to discuss this straight with your roomies so that the registration can occur and you don't have any unneeded costs!

One-time Costs

A one-time deposit is due at the beginning of the lease. You will discover the quantity in your rental contract. It may not go beyond 3 months' cold rent. The deposit should be paid at the beginning of the tenancy. However, you do not have to pay all of it at the same time. You can pay it in three installations and spread it over the first 3 months' lease. The landlord or landlady need to deposit the down payment in a checking account and invest it with interest. After you vacate, you will get the deposit back, consisting of interest, supplied the apartment was not harmed throughout your occupancy.

All-inclusive Rent

A reasonably new form of lease is the extensive rent. As the name suggests, all expenses (except the deposit) are consisted of in the rental rate. In addition, the actual service charges are not calculated according to intake however are repaired by contract. On the one hand, this has the benefit that you do not get a surprise at the end of the year when you get your utility costs. However, you then also have no possibility of lowering the ancillary costs through a mindful lifestyle.