Higher rents: How much can landlords charge households?

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Many have already received the big mail, for some it is still to come. Hundreds of homeowners are demanding higher rents for their apartments. This is mainly due to the reference interest rate, which rose to 1.5 percent in June this year and may continue to rise. There are two more reasons for the rent increase: inflation and the increase in costs in general.

With the increase in costs, homeowners demand higher expenses for the apartment; for example, that operating or maintenance costs have increased.

Because it’s easier, arbitration authorities typically charge flat rates ranging from 0 percent to a maximum of 1 percent, depending on how old the property is or how many additional charges are being collected. The landlord must first present concrete evidence in court about the alleged increase in costs.

Arbitration authorities in the canton of Zurich have now standardized their practices. This means that in future all twelve authorities will apply the same principles in choosing the appropriate percentage for the flat rate.

Between 0.0 and 0.5 percent

Here’s the math: For new buildings built for a maximum of five years, homeowners are generally not allowed to claim any cost increases; The flat rate is 0.0 percent. If not, it depends on how much additional cost the landlord has already imposed on the tenant in the contract. If there are many, only the 0.25 percent cost increase will be passed on to them. If only a few or no additional cost items are billed separately, a flat rate of 0.5 percent of the annual net rent is used.

These rules provide affected tenants with an indication of how much fixed fees they may be charged. This makes it easier for them to reach an agreement with the landlord, apart from the authorities.

As the Zurich regional court noted in a statement, deviations from these requirements may be made in exceptional cases. Because the specific individual situation is and will remain decisive.

Source : Blick