Your Lawyer for Tenancy Law – online and immediately

Online Lawyer for Tenancy Law: Legal Tips for your Tenancy

How can I defend myself against a termination? How can I file an action for eviction? And what should I do in the event of a termination for personal use? Tenancy law is particularly relevant for both tenants and landlords in the event of a dispute.

It is therefore advisable to seek professional support in the event of disputes between tenants and landlords. A specialized lawyer can give you online advice on tenancy law by informing you about the obligations of tenants and landlords, acting as a mediator and protecting your interests.

Online tenancy law advice for tenants

Disputes with the landlord have a high potential for conflict and are often associated with high costs. With one of our online tenancy law lawyers, you have a strong partner at your side who will provide you with professional support in all rights and obligations and resolve matters quickly.

Tenancy agreement

With Recht 24/7, you can have your tenancy agreement checked easily.

Objection to rent increase

As a tenant, you have two months to lodge a written and justified objection to a rent increase. It is generally advisable to object to a proposed rent increase if:

• there are justified uncertainties as to whether the previous rent is below the local comparative rent,
• the landlord does not provide a convincing explanation for the planned rent increase,
• there are already defects in the apartment that the landlord is not taking care of,
• the comparative apartments mentioned are not really comparable with your own apartment,
• the statutory deadlines for rent increases have not been met or
• the proposed rent increase exceeds the permitted limit.
• Rental defects

If the apartment has a defect that makes it significantly more difficult to live in, you can report the defect to the landlord immediately. You can then assert various rights: Removal of the defect, rent reduction or withholding of the rent if the defect is not removed. In the case of serious defects, you can also terminate the contract without notice if you can no longer use the apartment in whole or in part. If the landlord does not rectify the defect by a deadline set by you, you can have the defect rectified by a specialist company yourself.

When can I reduce the rent as a tenant?

In order to reduce the rent, there must generally be a defect in the rented property. As a tenant, however, you must inform the landlord of the defect and set a deadline for the landlord to rectify the defect. It is therefore important here that the rental defect is described precisely and that a reasonable deadline is set for rectifying the defect. Retroactive rent reductions are not possible. You can claim a rent reduction due to noise disturbance, but also due to heat in your attic apartment if the apartment does not comply with the building regulations that applied at the time of construction.
There are a number of pitfalls here regarding the extent to which you can reduce the rent due to the respective defect. With our tenancy law online advice, you are on the safe side in these cases.

Defending against (personal use) termination

As a tenant, you can ask a tenancy law lawyer online your questions about a termination for personal use and how it is effective.

Objection to operating costs

It is worth having an operating costs bill checked online with the help of a tenancy lawyer, as around half of all bills are incorrect. You do not bear any risks from the check: If the bill was too high, you will get your money back. If it was too low, you only have to pay the lower invoice amount. As a tenant, you can lodge an objection to this within twelve months. This must be in writing and clearly justified. If the landlord does not respond to your objection, you can withhold the service charges.

Tenancy law online – Renovation & cosmetic repairs

As a tenant, you are generally responsible for keeping the apartment in good condition.
However, there are often ineffective clauses in the tenancy agreement, especially regarding cosmetic repairs, which can be quickly discovered with a brief consultation in tenancy law online. Cosmetic repairs include, for example, wallpapering, painting and whitewashing walls and ceilings, and painting floors, radiators including heating pipes, interior doors, windows and exterior doors from the inside. The costs for cosmetic repairs must generally be borne by the landlord. If the contract stipulates otherwise, it is important to ensure that this is not invalid. The landlord may not specify the color tones, types or patterns. It is only possible to stipulate this in the contract if the apartment was handed over in a renovated condition or if the apartment was not renovated and the tenant receives reasonable compensation for expenses.

Hire an online tenancy lawyer as a landlord

As a landlord, you are often faced with lengthy disputes when disputes arise with the tenant. It is often formalities that render a termination or the tenancy agreement invalid and lead to high additional costs. It is therefore advisable to hire a specialist lawyer to guide you through the process and ensure that all the necessary steps have been taken. With their expertise and knowledge of tenancy law, they can help to protect your rights and ensure that your interests as a landlord are safeguarded.

Termination of the tenant

As a landlord, you have the option of terminating the tenancy with notice, without notice or with a special termination. The notice of termination must always be in the form of a letter and must be signed by hand by the landlord. The declaration must clearly state the subject of the termination, the reason for termination and the deadline by which the apartment must be vacated.
A tenancy can be terminated with due notice if the tenant has breached a contractual obligation, the landlord declares personal use or the property cannot be utilized in a commercially reasonable manner with the tenancy.

Term of tenancy Notice period

• 5 years 3 months
• 5 – 8 years 6 months
• Over 8 years 9 months

The tenancy can be terminated without notice if the tenant sublets the apartment without the landlord’s consent, intentionally damages or neglects the apartment and is also repeatedly in arrears with rent payments.
A special termination is possible if the tenant lives in a two-family house of the landlord, who lives in the second apartment himself. Or the tenant lives in other rooms within the living space used by the landlord.

Claiming rent arrears

Rent arrears exist if the rent payment has not been credited to the landlord’s account by the third working day.
Termination without notice due to rent arrears can be issued if the tenant

fails to pay the rent for two consecutive months
pays only part of the rent for two consecutive months
owes an amount equivalent to two months’ rent over a longer period of time.

Termination without notice becomes ineffective if the tenant settles the rent arrears within two months of the action for eviction.

Increasing the rent

If you want to increase the rent, you must notify the tenant by letter or email, in any case in text form. You can only increase the rent 15 months after the tenant has moved in. The rent can be increased to the usual local rate within the municipality, based on the net rent.
If the landlord has modernized the apartment (not maintained it!), 8 percent may be added to the annual rent. The modernization must be announced in writing three months in advance.

Termination for personal use

As a landlord, you can ask a tenancy lawyer online your questions about a termination for personal use and how it is effective.

Carry out an eviction action

If the tenant does not vacate the apartment on time despite an effective notice of termination, an action for eviction can be brought. An eviction action usually takes between two months and two years.
Info box: If the tenant pays the rent arrears within two months of being served with the eviction notice, the termination without notice is invalid.
The costs of an eviction action often amount to a four- to five-figure sum based on the amount of the annual basic rent with additional legal, court and eviction costs. In principle, the unsuccessful party bears the legal costs. However, if you are unable to pay, you as the landlord may still be stuck with the costs.
If you are successful in court with your eviction action, you will receive an eviction order. This means that the tenant must leave the apartment within 3-4 weeks. Otherwise there will be an eviction. As the landlord, you will have to bear the costs yourself. For an overview of all the deadlines and dates, you should consult an online tenancy lawyer.

Claiming the deposit payment

The deposit payment must also be stipulated in the contract and may not exceed three times the monthly rent. It is important that the rental deposit is invested separately from your own assets, for example by means of a cash deposit, a deposit savings account, a guarantee or rental deposit insurance. If the tenant cannot pay the sum in one go, it can also be paid in three equal payments.

Service charges

If you do not want to pay the service charges for the apartment yourself, you must agree this in the contract. When you draw up a service charge statement, you must list the individual charges and costs in detail. The tenant can pay the following service charges
the sewage charge, property tax, warm operating costs, elevator, street cleaning and garbage collection, vermin removal and building cleaning, lighting costs, garden maintenance, property and liability insurance, janitor costs, costs for television, cable connection or antenna, laundry room, chimney sweep and other operating costs.

Apartment keys and right of inspection

As the landlord, you must give the tenant all the keys to the apartment, including the cellar, garage and letterbox. The landlord may not generally enter the apartment. There must be a specific reason or occasion for this. This can be, for example, an inspection in the case of a new tenancy or the discovery of defects.