Saturday 15 February 2020

Berlin "Mietendeckel" Is A Rent Freeze And A Rent Cap - What Happens When?

The now worldwide infamous "Mietendeckel" under observation by many big cities with housing issues has various aspects to it coming into effect at different times. There is also a differentiation between re-letting and existing contracts. I will give the collection of regulations some structure, later on adding a timeline to it.


Rent Freeze
Rent Cap


Re-Renting



Rent on 18 June 2019 maximum but possibly restricted by the rent cap table

Rent Cap Table for any contract after the publication date of the law in the Journal of Laws and Ordinances for the State of Berlin Amtsblatt 1)


Existing Contracts



Rent on 18 June 2019 maximum but possibly restricted by the rent cap table. The landlord must actively inform the tenant about the “correct” rent defined by either the date above of the rent cap, whichever is lower. 2)

The rent cap requires a rent reduction by the landlord if the current rent exceeds the rent derived from the cap table by >20%. This action has to happen 9 months after the publication. 3)
1) Before the publication, there is no actual restriction except that rents exceeding the cap table by more than 20% will have to be reduced later.
2) As of 1 January 2022, the rent cap table will be subject to an annual review based on the percentage inflation determined by the Federal Statistics Office as of 31 December of the previous year but limited to 1.3%. The Senate department responsible for housing must define the relevant percentage by way of a legal order.
3) For more details about the cap table see https://germanproperties.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-berlin-rent-cap-mietendeckel-is.html

Applying the cap table and assuming the highest possible value of 9,80 €/m²/month with 0,74 € for a good location and 1,00 € bonus for top equipment and being completed between 2003 and 2013  your top rent is 11,54. Add 20% before it is deemed excessive by the "Mietendeckel" you end up at
13,85 €/m²/month. This is the Maximum!
It does not matter, whether the apartment is furnished or not, if it is older than 2014 this is the maximum rent you can possibly have. There is a time-line to be observed. I will publish a separate post on this subject. One very short time-line applies to current vacancies. For details on this matter please see https://germanproperties.blogspot.com/2020/02/action-required-you-can-optimize-your.html urgently.

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