Receive and review the rent index

A rent index gives you an overview of the rents of comparable apartments in the city or municipality. It contains clues,

• whether a rent increase by the landlord is justified,
• whether the rent is permissible for re-letting if the apartment is located in an area in which the regulations of the so-called rent brake apply,
• whether the rent is generally reasonable if it is outside the scope of the so-called rent control.

The German Civil Code and the Rent Index Ordinance distinguish between simple rent indices and qualified rent indices. The qualified rent index is prepared according to recognized scientific principles and is recognized by the municipality or by interest groups representing the landlord and tenant. In the event of a dispute, a qualified rent index has greater probative value than a simple one.

The rent index shows the monthly average net cold local comparative rent in euros per square meter. This is based on the net cold rents that have been newly agreed or changed in the last 6 years. This comparative rent can be higher or lower for each individual apartment. The criteria for this are listed in the rent index.

Decisive factors can be, for example

• Apartment size
• age of building
• residential location
• Energy modernization status and
• equipment of the apartment, e.g. central heating, indoor toilet, parquet flooring.

The local comparative rent may differ from the current market rent.

Municipalities, cities or interest groups representing landlords and tenants jointly draw up rent indices. Tenants' associations and home and landowners' associations are examples of interest groups. Cities or municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants are legally obliged to draw up a rent index.

Simple rent indexes should generally be adjusted to market developments and published every two years. In the case of qualified rent indexes, such an update is mandatory every two years.

Requirements

As a rule, rent indexes can be viewed without any further requirements.