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RENTING

How a German ‘Mieterverein’ can help you reduce your rent

If you're renting in Germany, you may have heard about a tenants' association - or Mieterverein. But you may not be aware that joining one could help save you money in the long run.

Published: 10 September 2024 11:17 CEST
Updated: 14 September 2024 08:15 CEST
Flats in Munich Altstadt
Flats in Munich's historic city centre. Photo: picture alliance / Matthias Balk/dpa | Matthias Balk

There’s a truism that applies to many areas of life in Germany: there are plenty of rules and legal protections, but the vast majority of people don’t know them.

This feels particularly real when it comes to the world of renters’ rights. As a nation that generally prefers to rent than to buy, Germany has a huge range of in-built protections for tenants – but that doesn’t always stop landlords from bending the rules. 

The best way to make sure you’re getting a fair deal is to try and get familiar with your rights, or enlist the help of somebody who knows them inside-out.

That’s where the concept of the Mieterverein, or tenants’ association, comes in. These member-only organisations are there to advocate for the rights of tenants, keeping illegally high rents and other dodgy practices in check for renters in Germany. 

These types of associations can be a life-saver for foreigners who may struggle with the German language and German law, and could even help you save money in the long run. 

What is a Mieterverein?

A Mieterverein, or tenants’ association, is exactly what it sounds like: an organisation that stands up for the rights of tenants. It works by offering affordable memberships for renters – usually costing somewhere between €50 and €100 per year – which is then used to provide legal advice and representation, as well as advocacy and lobbying work. 

Ultimately, the idea is about strength in numbers. Instead of a single tenant taking on a big landlord like Vonovia or Deutsche Wohnen, a collective approach gives renters both more bargaining power and more resources.

Following this principle, many of the regional Mietervereine have clubbed together to create tenants’ associations in their state, which ultimately belong to the Germany-wide umbrella association, the Deutscher Mieterbund (DMB).

There are 320 associations currently active in the DMB, with the largest being the Berliner Mieterverein with more than 190,000 members. This is followed by Hamburg, with 78,000 members, and Munich, with 63,000. 

READ ALSO: How foreign residents in Germany are winning rent reductions

Members rely on tenants’ associations to assist with anything to do with Germany’s tenancy law. That means poring over rental contracts, ironing out difficulties with landlords, challenging rent increases or overly high rents, and fighting unfair or illegal evictions.

Of course, one of the most compelling reasons to join is to keep high rents in check – and find out if you could be eligible for a reduction. 

How can a Mieterverein help lower my rent?

Though it may not always feel like it, the vast majority of areas with a tight housing situation in Germany are subject to fairly stringent rental controls, known as the Mietpreisbremse.

These controls were mandated in a 2015 law that has recently been extended to 2029. Though there are some loopholes, the rules generally dictate that cold rents should be no more than 10 percent above the average rent for comparable properties in the same neighbourhood.

READ ALSO: German rent brake to be extended until 2029: What you need to know

The ways for calculating this are complicated but all you really need to know is that they are based on something called the Mietspiegel: a huge table charting the average rent prices based on factors like a property’s size, location, age and facilities. 

Berlin prenzlauer Berg

Flats in the Berlin district of Prenzlauer Berg. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Monika Skolimowska

One service tenants’ associations can offer is to compare your rent against the Mietspiegel to see if you’re being charged too much. 

To do this, they’ll look at your contract and ask you a series of questions about your rental property. If it turns out the rent is illegally high, Mieterverein lawyers can help you draft a letter to officially challenge your rent and ask for it to be reduced.

Some tenants’ associations also offer legal protection insurance (Rechtsschutzversicherung) as part of their memberships, which can help you deal with any issues that may arise with the landlord later on. 

What about annual rent increases?

In most cases, these can be disputed as well. Under the Mietpreisbremse rules, rents can be raised by a maximum of 20 percent in the space of three years. This can be good grounds to challenge a big annual increase in rent – but it isn’t the only way. 

The legal representatives at your local Mieterverein will be able to help you dispute increases in rent, as long as you don’t agree to these increases straight away.

Once again, the increases may be based on a shaky foundation of illegally high rents to start with, so it’s always worth getting everything checked over in full by a qualified lawyer.

It’s also worth keeping an eye on any issues with your apartment, such as broken fixtures and fittings, because these can be grounds for a rent reduction until the problem is fixed.

READ ALSO: How to get a rent reduction for problems in your German flat

Advisors at the Mietervereine will not only be able to tell you what are grounds for a Mietminderung (temporary rent reduction), but also how much you could be entitled to. 

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For members

PROPERTY

Who pays broker’s fees on property in Germany – and how much do they cost?

One of the major hidden costs of buying and selling property in Germany is the estate agent's commission, or broker's fee. We look at some of the unusual rules around it - and how much you can expect to pay.

Published: 17 September 2024 16:25 CEST
Who pays broker's fees on property in Germany - and how much do they cost?

There are many areas of life in which things in Germany function just that little bit differently – and buying a house is no exception.

Though the buoyant property market in the Bundesrepublik makes it an attractive place to buy, anyone looking to get their foot on the housing ladder should consider the hidden fees they might incur.

Beyond interest rates, taxes and fees for notaries and translators, one major outlay is the estate agent’s commission, which can sometimes stretch to thousands of euros.

Here’s what to know about these hefty fees and how you might be able to lower them. 

Who pays commission on property transactions in Germany?

If you come from another European country or somewhere like the United States, you may be used to a system in which the seller pays the broker’s fee. This intuitively makes sense because the estate agent is there to market the property, liaise with buyers and ultimately get the best price for the seller – so it makes sense that the seller should pay for these services.

Until recently, however, it was the buyer who was responsible for paying the entirety of the estate agent’s commission in Germany. That meant that these fees – which could be as high as seven percent of the purchase cost – were added to the mountain of extra costs buyers had to contend with, from notary fees to land transfer tax.

READ ALSO: The hidden costs of buying a house in Germany

Luckily for buyers (but less so for sellers), this was changed under a law that came into force at the end of 2020. Since then, costs are generally split 50/50 between buyers and sellers.

However, there are some details that are important to note here. If the seller commissions the estate agent to help them sell their home, they are technically liable for the costs but must pay a minimum of 50 percent. 

If the buyer commissions the estate agent to find them a home, the same rules apply the other way around: the buyer is liable for the costs but can obtain a maximum of 50 percent from the seller.

In each case, the side that commissioned the broker must prove they have paid their share before the other side is liable to pay theirs. 

How much do estate agents’ fees cost in Germany?

Commission on property sales varies from state to state but is generally set at between 5 and 7 percent of the purchase price.

According to online portal ImmobilienScout24, these were the standard rates that applied in each of the federal states in 2024, with the number in brackets representing a 50 percent share of the costs:

Baden-Württemberg: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Bavaria: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Berlin: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Brandenburg: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Bremen: 5.95 percent (2.97 percent)

Hamburg: 6.25 percent (3.12 percent)

Hesse: 5.95 percent (2.97 percent)

Lower Saxony: 4.76 – 5,95 percent or 7.14 percent, depending on the region. (2.38 – 3.57 percent)

Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania: 5.95 percent (2.97 percent)

North Rhine-Westphalia: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Rhineland-Palatinate: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Saarland: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Saxony: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Saxony-Anhalt: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Schleswig-Holstein: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

Thuringia: 7.14 percent (3.57 percent)

If it’s hard to gauge how much this means in real terms, we can take the example of two properties: a €200,000 apartment and a €500,000 family home.

In the state of Hesse, a buyer splitting the broker’s fee equally with the seller would pay €5,940 to buy the €200,000 apartment and €14,850 to buy the €500,000 house.

In pricier Berlin, meanwhile, the same buyer would pay €7,140 on the €200,000 apartment and €17,850 on the €500,000 house.

READ ALSO: Is autumn 2024 the right time to buy a property in Germany?

Here’s where it gets more complicated, however: under German law, you are technically free to negotiate the commission with your estate agent.

That means that, especially in areas with stiff competition, you may be able to secure a better deal. 

Do I always have to pay commission in Germany? 

Not always. In fact, as a seller, you’re perfectly free to sell your property privately without enlisting the help of a real estate agent.

The benefit of this, of course, is that you can potentially save thousands of euros in fees, both for yourself and any prospective buyer. 

On the flip side, though, you will need to take the entire job of the estate agent on yourself, from marketing the property to liaising with potential buyers and finally closing the deal.

Real estate agent Germany

A real estate agent talks to prospective tenants at an apartment viewing. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Tobias Hase

There can also be some upfront costs involved in commissioning things like floor plans and professional photography, as well as the time you’ll need to invest in learning all the procedures and preparing relevant documents for notary – to name just a few examples.

Ultimately, though, it’s up to you to decide whether the expense of working with a professional broker is worth it in the end. 

As a buyer, there are also some situations where you’ll see the words ‘provisionsfrei’ – or commission-free – written in a property listing.

This is fairly common in new-build properties, where the developer may sell the homes directly to interested buyers. More rarely, an existing property may be listed without commission, making it a more attractive proposition.

In both cases, it’s possible that commission has been built into the purchase price, so you may not necessarily be getting a better deal.

Another case where you’re likely to be able to avoid commission as a buyer are so-called Kapitalanlagen – or buy-to-let properties. 

READ ALSO: Should you think about purchasing a buy-to-let property in Germany?

These tenanted properties are designed to be bought as investments: buyers can enjoy additional rental income over time and, ideally, will also make money when they come to sell the property several years later.

For this reason, costs are generally kept slightly lower for the buyer by eschewing the standard broker’s commission. 

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