From the excessive back-claim to feigned personal need: the most common tricks around the apartment, the deposit and rent increases, and the right legal response to each.
The housing market is tight, and where people are under pressure and urgently need something, scams reliably appear. Some are outright fraud, others are clauses and demands that look reputable but do not hold up in court. The good news: for almost every one of these scams there is a clear legal answer. You just have to know it.
When looking for an apartment, never pay any money before the viewing; genuine landlords and agents do not demand this. A rental deposit (Mietkaution) may amount to at most 3 months' net cold rent (§ 551 BGB, German Civil Code) and must be invested separately from the landlord's assets. Cosmetic-repair (Schönheitsreparatur) clauses with rigid deadlines are invalid (BGH VIII ZR 361/03). Rent increases are tied to the comparative rent and the capping limit (§ 558 BGB), and modernisation surcharges are capped at 8 percent (§ 559 BGB). For apartment brokerage, the principle that the party who ordered the agent pays (Bestellerprinzip) applies (§ 3 WoVermRG), and anyone who had to move out because of feigned personal need (Eigenbedarf) can claim damages.
A popular scam: shortly before claims become time-barred, a high service-charge or damage back-claim suddenly arrives, often after you have moved out. The invoice is meant to create pressure and be paid quickly. Check two things here: whether the service-charge statement arrived within the deadline at all (the landlord has 12 months after the end of the accounting period for this, § 556 Abs. 3 BGB) and whether the individual items are justified. Do not pay hastily just because a deadline is approaching; instead, demand a comprehensible statement and inspection of the supporting documents.
Many tenancy agreements oblige the tenant to carry out cosmetic repairs at fixed intervals, for example the kitchen every 3 years, living rooms every 5 years. Such rigid deadlines are invalid because they would force the tenant to renovate even when the apartment is not worn at all (fundamentally BGH, VIII ZR 361/03). If the deadline provision is invalid, the entire obligation falls away, not just the deadline. Likewise invalid is the duty to return an apartment taken over unrenovated in a renovated state without appropriate compensation. Check your clause carefully before you paint on moving out or pay a settlement amount.
The rental security may not exceed three times the monthly net cold rent (rent without operating costs) (§ 551 Abs. 1 BGB). If the landlord demands more, the agreement is invalid to that extent. You may also pay the cash deposit in 3 equal monthly instalments, the first at the start of the tenancy (§ 551 Abs. 2 BGB). A demand to transfer the full deposit immediately and in addition to the first rent payment is one you do not have to meet.
The landlord must invest a cash security separately from their own assets at a credit institution, at the usual interest rate for savings deposits with a three-month notice period (§ 551 Abs. 3 BGB). The interest belongs to you. If the landlord does not invest the deposit separately, you may withhold the deposit payment until proof of proper investment is provided. This protects your money in case the landlord becomes insolvent.
After you move out, the deposit must be returned once no justified claims remain. The landlord is entitled to a reasonable period to check and settle, as a rule a few months; in part, they may retain a portion until the next service-charge statement. Invented deductions, by contrast, are not permitted: normal wear and tear through contractual use is settled with the rent and may not be charged. Demand a written, documented breakdown of every deduction and do not accept flat-rate amounts without proof.
For a rent increase up to the locally customary comparative rent (§ 558 BGB), the rent must have been unchanged for 15 months, and it may rise by at most 20 percent within 3 years. In areas with a tight housing market, many federal states lower this capping limit to 15 percent. The landlord must also justify the increase, for example with a rent index (Mietspiegel), comparable apartments or an expert opinion. Without justification and without observing these limits, you do not have to agree to an increase.
After a genuine modernisation, the landlord may pass 8 percent of the modernisation costs attributable to your apartment onto the rent each year (§ 559 BGB). Common tricks: pure maintenance or repair is passed off as modernisation (only genuine improvements or energy savings count, and saved maintenance costs must be deducted), or the notice and formal requirements are bypassed. In addition, a cap applies: through the modernisation, the rent may rise by no more than 3 euros per square metre within 6 years, and by at most 2 euros where the starting rent is low. Check what was actually modernised and whether only permissible costs are being passed on.
The classic in apartment fraud: a dream offer at a suspiciously cheap price, the alleged landlord is abroad, and you are supposed to transfer a deposit or a reservation fee before the viewing, often via a payment service or to a trustee. After that, the contact disappears. The rule is simple: never pay any money before you have viewed the apartment and concluded a genuine contract with an identifiable landlord. Reputable landlords demand no advance payment and no handover of keys by post.
For the brokerage of rental apartments, the ordering-party principle (Bestellerprinzip) applies: only the party who commissioned the agent pays them (§ 3 WoVermRG). In practice this almost always means the landlord commissions, so the landlord pays. You, as an apartment seeker, may not be burdened with a commission simply because the landlord engaged the agent. An agreement meant to oblige you to pay even though you did not commission the agent is invalid. Do not be talked into believing that the commission is a condition for getting the apartment.
A particularly bitter scam: the landlord gives notice on the grounds of personal need (Eigenbedarf), supposedly needing the apartment for themselves or relatives, but the reason is invented in order to get rid of you and re-let the apartment at a higher price. If the tenant moves out on the basis of such a notice and the personal need turns out to be feigned, they can claim damages, for example moving and agent costs or the extra costs of a more expensive replacement apartment (BGH, VIII ZR 49/16). If, after your move-out, the apartment is suddenly re-let instead of being occupied by the landlord, gather evidence and have the case examined.
We are an independent citizens' initiative (Bürgerinitiative) and provide general information. This text is not legal advice for an individual case. In the event of a dispute or uncertainty, contact your local tenants' association (Mieterverein), the Deutscher Mieterbund, or a lawyer specialising in tenancy law. If you suspect fraud during your apartment search, file a criminal complaint with the police.