Competent contact for renting housing

Do you often sign something without looking and reading the text? Let’s be honest, we all do that sometimes. Today we will talk about why you should not do this when signing a contract to rent housing in Germany or any other European country. And about what we expect to see there, and what does not.

If you have not read the previous articles, we advise you to look at us and read about how to find housing, what kind of accommodation options there are for students and what are the others.

The attitude to rent contracts is rather strict, it is not possible to “talk like a human being” with the owner to bypass certain points after signing it. And if your rights are violated, the contract will really guarantee their protection after a complaint to the competent authorities.

You sign a contract even if you rent a room from the owner, so there will be no “believe the word”.

The contract should include such items:

Rent price. It is imperative to clarify whether utilities are included.
The size of the deposit (Kaution), which is returned upon eviction. It is usually 1.5 – 2 monthly rentals. If more, then there is reason to “bargain” for its reduction.
Contract time. If you want to rent a house further, you will need to conclude a new contract.
Term of termination. It is usually 3 months. In other non-European countries it may be 2 weeks.
If there are breakdowns in the apartment, the owner is responsible for them. For electrical wiring, plumbing and sewer pipes, etc. responsible owner of the property. If in the whole house or only in your apartment pipes burst or you were flooded, then you are not financially responsible for this. But it may be that the tenant became the cause of the breakdown, such circumstances are prescribed in the contract.
There is such a thing as “house rules”. They may be governed by the rules of the federal state, the city or even the tenants of the house. The contract should contain “quiet hours”, the right to keep animals, use of parking, etc.
Please note that the homeowner has the right to increase the cost of rent during the term of the contract. The law permits an increase in rent by a maximum of 20% for three years. This can be argued only by official directories, which are issued by municipalities and determine the average cost of housing.

Basically, all contracts are standard, but you should not sign them without looking. Even if the landlord is a good fellow and will not use your ignorance of the language for personal gain, you yourself can skip some important point and bear responsibility for it.