Robin Rent pulls the rent brake and ensures fairness
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The rent brake was introduced in Germany almost ten years ago. This law enables many consumers to lower their rent. In cities and municipalities with a rent brake, the respective rent may not be more than 10 percent above the local comparative rent. However, many landlords still charge excessive rents and often get away with it due to the housing shortage in many cities. Robin Rent is stepping up to change this. We enforce fair rents – risk-free, legally compliant and uncomplicated.
Table of contents
Background to the rent brake
The aim of the rent brake in Germany is to limit the increase in rents in tight housing markets and thus maintain affordable housing. It is intended to protect tenants from excessively high rent increases and promote a social mix in cities and municipalities. In concrete terms, this means that when existing apartments are re-let, the rent may not be more than 10 percent above the local comparative rent. Otherwise, tenants have the option of reducing their rent and reclaiming the overpayment. But how do I actually find out whether my rent is more than 10 percent above the local comparative rent?
Determining independently whether the rent brake can be applied to your own apartment is often not that easy. This is because not only the location, size and rent level of the apartment in question must be taken into account, but also other factors such as the year the apartment was built and its energy efficiency. Only then can the local comparative rent for the respective apartment be determined with the help of the qualified rent index in your city. In some cases, there are also exceptions to the rent brake.
At Robin Rent, we help you understand the local comparative rent and make sure you’re not paying too much. We’re here to help you make your rent fair and equitable. Simply fill out our form and receive an instant assessment from us within a few minutes. We’ll then take a closer look at your case and help you reduce your rent.
Pulling the rent brake also helps your neighbors
If you lower your rent on the basis of the rent brake, this will probably make you happy. However, it’s not just you who will benefit, but also your neighbors. One of the reasons for this is that you are helping to reduce the local comparative rent in your area and make future rent increases more difficult.
Another important aspect is strengthening the neighborhood. If rents remain stable, people can stay in their homes and neighborhoods for longer. This not only promotes a stable and supportive neighborhood, but also a stronger sense of community. People who feel safe in their living environment are more willing to get involved in their neighborhood and build social ties.
Your efforts can also set an example. When you apply the rent brake, you encourage other tenants to exercise their rights too. The more people stand up for fair rents, the greater the pressure on landlords to comply with the legal requirements. Your commitment can therefore trigger a wave of solidarity and awareness that goes far beyond your own rental agreement.
In the long term, the consistent use of the rent brake contributes to the general easing of the housing market. If rents do not rise uncontrolled, fewer people will have to leave their homes due to high housing costs. This can lead to a more stable social structure and prevent entire neighborhoods from being depopulated by excessively high rents.
At Robin Rent, we support you in taking advantage of the rent brake. Our experienced legal experts are at your side to ensure that your rent does not rise excessively and that you can stay in your home. We are convinced that together we can ensure fair rents – for you, your neighbors and all future tenants. Together, we can make the housing market fairer and more equitable.
How landlords try to work around the rent brake
The rent brake is intended to protect tenants from excessive rent increases and stabilize the housing market. However, there are some exceptions where the law does not apply. This applies, for example, to newly built apartments that were rented out for the first time after 1 October 2014 or apartments whose extensive modernization corresponds to around one third of the cost of new construction. Fixed-term tenancy agreements and apartments that already had an excessive rent before the current letting can also be exempt, provided the landlord informed the tenant of the previous rent before the tenancy agreement was concluded. However, many landlords try to use sneaky tricks to turn the exception into a rule.
A common trick used by landlords is to present simple renovation measures as comprehensive modernizations. However, it is not considered modernization if an apartment is simply restored to a normal condition, for example by replacing an old kitchen with a new one, replacing windows or repairing the floor. Instead, it can only be considered modernization if at least two thirds of apartments of the same age in a federal state are in a poorer condition and the costs for the modernization correspond to approximately one third of the costs for the construction of a new apartment.
Another trick that landlords often use to sidestep the rent brake is to draw up commercial rental agreements. The rent brake does not apply to commercially used space. So if your rental agreement mentions the commercial use of your apartment or individual parts of the space, all alarm bells should start ringing. Unless you have expressly requested this, you may be at a disadvantage because commercial tenants are significantly less protected than private tenants. However, if you can prove that you do not run a business and never intended to do so, this trick can be easily refuted.
In addition, landlords often try to bypass the rent brake by offering furnished apartments. However, the law also applies in this case, as landlords are only allowed to charge a furnishing surcharge of around 2 percent for furnished apartments. However, landlords often increase the rent for furnished apartments many times over.
At Robin Rent, we are aware of these and other tricks and are here to help you ensure that your landlord complies with the law. Our legal experts will help you to recognize unfair practices and take action against them. Together, we’ll make sure that the rent brake applies and that you pay a fair and just rent.
Questions and answers
The rent brake can be used by many tenants in Germany to reduce their rent. One prerequisite for this is that the rent brake has come into force in your own place of residence and that the respective rental contract was concluded after the law came into force. Another prerequisite for activating the rent brake is that your own apartment is not a new build or was not rented out for the first time after October 1, 2014. Even extensively modernized apartments can be exempt from the rent brake if the modernization costs correspond to about one third of the new construction costs. In addition, the rent brake does not apply to commercially used rental space, for example.
At Robin Rent, we help you to check whether you can apply the rent brake and support you in lowering your rent risk-free. Our team of experienced legal experts is at your side to ensure that you only pay the rent you really have to – fairly and equitably.
Initially, we will only be helping tenants in Munich to reduce their rent using the rent brake. In the medium term, however, we want to help consumers throughout Germany to get a fair rent.
With our free online quick check, you can check in just a few minutes whether you may be entitled to apply the rent brake and reduce your rent. If the result is positive, we at Robin Rent will be happy to check your case in detail and apply the rent brake for you. Our service is completely risk-free for you, as we work with legal cost financiers who assume the full cost risk for you. As a result, you only pay a commission if your case is successful and never pay more than you get back from your landlord.
Yes, your rent can also be reduced retrospectively using the rent brake. If you find that your rent exceeds the legally permitted upper limit, you have the right to demand an adjustment of the rent and to reclaim any rent paid in excess retroactively for up to 30 months.
Robin Rent is THE expert for the rent brake in Germany. With us, you have the opportunity to lower your rent – risk-free, legally compliant and uncomplicated. Our business model ensures that you only pay once we have successfully lowered your rent, so you don’t take any financial risk. In many cases, our commission is fully covered by a portion of the rent paid back to you.
With our online quick check, you can easily and rapidly determine whether your rent is too high. If this is the case, our experienced legal experts will take care of all the communication and legal steps to lower your rent. We know the tricks and tactics that landlords often use and know exactly how to effectively enforce your rights.
You also save valuable time and effort by hiring Robin Rent. Instead of struggling through the complex legal situation yourself and investing a lot of time in communicating with your landlord, you can rely on our expertise. We take care of all the formalities and legal steps while you can sit back and relax. With Robin Rent by your side, you can be sure that your rent will be fair.
At Robin Rent, we know that a high rent is an enormous financial burden and we don’t want to put you under any additional strain. That’s why we make you a risk-free offer: We work with legal cost financiers who assume your full cost risk and only receive a commission if we are successful. . Even then, there are no actual costs for you at any time, because if the landlord repays you, the commission is simply deducted from the repayment.
No, your landlord cannot terminate your tenancy agreement just because you are enforcing the rent brake. German tenancy law protects tenants from such unlawful termination. If you exercise your right to a fair rent and take measures to enforce the rent brake, this is not a permissible reason for termination.
The time it takes to reduce your rent with the help of Robin Rent can vary and depends on various factors. These include, for example, the complexity of your case and the response time of your landlord. In general, the process from the initial assessment to the final rent reduction takes around one to four months. In exceptional cases, however, there is a legal dispute, which can delay the process by several months.
We will also accompany you on the path to justice if a lawsuit has to be filed because an out-of-court settlement with your landlord has failed. To enforce your claims in court, you need a licensed lawyer. We at Robin Rent have been working for several years with renowned lawyers that are responsible for numerous landmark judgments in Germany and have already helped tens of thousands of consumers to obtain their rights. Many landlords hire successful law firms to defend them against rent brake lawsuits. We make sure that you have the best lawyers at your side to successfully enforce your claims.