The Judicial Court has previously determined that the Commission holds no authority to issue a judgment pertaining to the application of the principle of equal treatment.
Has the rental cost in your locale gone up? It might be that your landlord is thinking about revising your rent. However, you only need to agree to it if the revision is fair.
A letter from the landlord? When a rent hike is looming, the mood of those impacted is often initially dulled. There wasn't any renovation beforehand, and such clauses don't seem to exist in the lease agreement. Yet, a rental adjustment to the local market rate can be legally valid - under certain stipulations, at least.
Before endorsing this adjustment, tenants should definitely scrutinize whether these stipulations are met. Otherwise, they might not have to pay the rent hike at all. Dietmar Wall from the German Tenants' Union advises on which points to focus.
1. Formal stipulations
A rent hike must always be conveyed in writing and must be clear and understandable. It must also mention the previous and new rent rate, and provide a detailed explanation of how the local market rate was calculated. Moreover, a rent hike should be justified by the landlord themselves. If the letter originates from a lawyer or the housing office, and no original authority letter is enclosed, tenants can reject the hike within 14 days.
2. Adherence to the cap
Landlords can only raise the rent up to the local market rate, that is, the rent charged for similar apartments in the city. Simultaneously, they must guarantee that the rent does not escalate by more than 20 percent within three years. In cities with a tight housing market – such as Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne, Düsseldorf, and Frankfurt – a limit of 15 percent applies.
3. Distance from the last rent hike
How long ago was your last rent hike? This question is vital. At the least, 12 months must have passed between two rent hikes. The higher rent should only be paid from the 15th month after the last hike. The reason: Tenants have a period of two to three months to agree to the hike – the month the letter was received, plus two more months.
4. Examining the local market rate
Does the new rent align with the local market rate? Because the landlord must base the hike on this – either by means of a rent index, three comparable apartments, or an expert opinion. If there's a rent index, tenants should check whether the new rent falls within the range given for similar apartments. If the landlord refers to three comparable apartments, tenants should check whether these are similar in terms of location, size, equipment, condition, and age of the building. A tenants' union can help with the assessment.
5. Disqualifying criteria for index or graduated rent
In the case of an index or graduated rent contract, a hike up to the local market rate is precluded during the term. In these models, hikes may only be made according to the fixed scale or based on the agreed index.
After receiving the landlord's letter, it's important to carefully scrutinize the stipulations provided. Advising tenants on this, Dietmar Wall from the German Tenants' Union suggests focusing on the formal aspects of the rent hike notice.
The rent hike notice must be clearly written and communicated in writing, detailing the previous and new rent rates, as well as providing a justification and an explanation of how the local market rate was calculated.
