For the past three years: the rental price brake. So far, it says that the rental price may be a re-letting of existing housing in tight housing markets is only 10 percent above the local comparative rent – new and just been extensively modernized except. Also if the previous tenant has already paid a high rent, do not need to cut the owner because of Rent control. From January 2019, the law will be tightened: a duty to provide information applies to the landlord. He must, in future, inform the tenant prior to the conclusion of the lease, whether exceptions to the rental price brake is available and he may therefore demand a higher rent (section 556g Abs. 1a BGB). He does not, he won’t be able to rely later on the exception. In addition, the owner must inform the future residents, how much the previous tenant paid.

Anne-Christin Sievers

editor in the economy.

F. A. Z.

But some of the problems that prevent residents demand their rights, solves the new law: first, tenants in sought-after residential areas do not want to upset their landlords out of fear of termination, and, secondly, many shy away from the cost and effort of court proceedings. Nevertheless, there are cases where the tenant, relying on the brake is substantial rent rebates. Thus, the district court Hamburg-St. Georg has sentenced a landlord, the rent is 240 Euro per month to reduce the (Az. 913 C 2/17). It may be worthwhile for consumers to check the amount of the rent. But how can tenants find out whether you are paying too much rent? And if that is the case, how to lower your rent?

Who has signed a lease in a city with Rent control, should review the price based on the prevailing rental levels. On their websites, some cities provide qualified representative list of rents, with some, such as Berlin and Munich, the allowable rent via Online forms determine. The rent is more than 10 per cent, above, should complaints made by the tenants the amount to the landlord in writing, preferably by registered mail.

tenant should not reduce the payments on your own

In the notice, you specify the amount by which the rent is to high, and requests the landlord to accept a reduction in the amount of this amount. The owner must refund the overpaid rent, but only from the date of the complaint – for the time before that, it returns no money. In addition, he must pay part of the Deposit back, as it was calculated on the Basis of a too high rent.

the tenant should not cut the payments on their own. Turns out later that the landlord was in the right, threatens the termination. Smarter is to pay the full rent, subject to recovery due to Rent control. Not claimed by the owner, the Rent control applies, he must prove, for example by demonstrating extensive renovations. The landlord refuses to accept the reduction, the gear in front of the civil court.

F. A. Z. Edition

The digital edition of the F. A., for example, be optimised for all devices and multimedia content enriched

Who is a member of the tenants Association, know here you can get against a amount of help. For him, as for legal protection the insured whose policy includes Mietschutz, the dispute free of charge. The case is complicated, you should let the landlord and tenant law attorney to advise and instruct the Trustee to sue in court. You have to pay yourself, you can go to a process to the money – especially if you lose. Then one has in addition to court fees and their own attorney costs, to be borne by the opposite side.