Rental contract help

Member since 27 July 2020

turekgMember28 September 2020 14:13:57

Hi all, I need some help and some ideas in dealing with the following situation: I moved to Dresden in Nov. 2018 for a contract job at Max Planck. I rent a nice apartment in Striesen, and I thought I had a 2 year contract, but it turn out the rental contract is not till November of this year, but till February of next year. I have accepted a permanent job in France which will start also in November. I have been trying to find a tenant for my flat and I am not having a lot of luck. I have advertised here (Expat.com) and wg-gesucht.de as well as at work and the university. I gave 3 months notice but it is not clear to me that my agency is even advertising my apartment as all I keep hearing from them is that "I have the apartment until Feb 28 2021". In fact they declined to schedule the final walk through.
What can I do? I am hampered by the fact that I don't speak German.
Any ideas are welcome. Thank you so much.

beppi Germany/Singapore Expert

Member since 08 August 2010

Germany & Singapore Expert

beppiGermany/Singapore Expert28 September 2020 20:15:51

15577

The most common (and legally clearest) type of rental contract in Germany is unlimited with termination notice periods stipulated by law (which, in your case, would be three months).
Time-limited contracts are difficult to enforce - the contract must tell the reason for the limitation, and it can only be one from a very limited list of reasons defined by law. Many time-limited contracts are invalid - and then default to the abovementioned more common type. Therefore, it is advisable to have your contract checked by an expert (either a lawyer, or a tenants' association "Mieterverein", which you would first have to become member of).
If the limitation in your contract is indeed valid, you have to either pay the rent until the contract ends or find a mutually agreeable solution with the landlord. It will cost you in both cases!

TominStuttgart Germany Expert

Member since 19 March 2012

TominStuttgartGermany Expert28 September 2020 21:00:49

2792

In addition to what Beppi mentioned, there is something called the “Verbraucherzentrale” in every sizable city. I am posting a link below to the website of the one in Dresden (German only). It is a kind of consumer protection agency. They give advice about things like warranties or guarantees for things, contracts, problems with the telephone or internet service etc. Sometimes they can give good advice or pressure companies to deal with one fairly. Other times they will not succeed and recommend you take a lawyer if it might really be worth it. They usually start off with a pretty reasonable fee up front. The thing is that if one has a determined opponent that will fight things all the way to a court case, then it usually takes a year or 2 or 3 and can be very expensive both for lawyers and court costs if one loses. Even when one is in the right, an actual lawsuit for such things is either too time consuming or not worth it from a risk/benefit analysis.

https://www.verbraucherzentrale-sachsen … en/dresden