What rights do I have as a tenant in case of defects in the apartment?
July 3, 2024 | 45,00 EUR | answered by Gerda Dietrich
Dear lawyer,
I am contacting you because as a tenant in my current apartment, I am faced with various defects and I am unsure about what rights I have in this situation.
The situation is as follows: I signed a lease for my apartment a year ago and since then I have noticed various defects. These include mold on the walls, leaky water pipes, and problems with the heating. These defects significantly affect my living comfort and I am wondering if and how I can address them.
My concerns are that the landlord is not taking the defects seriously and is not taking any measures to remedy them. Furthermore, I am afraid that as a tenant I have no recourse to enforce my rights and to keep the apartment in a habitable condition.
Therefore, my question to you is: What rights do I have as a tenant in case of defects in the apartment? Are there any legal regulations that protect me and obligate the landlord to repair the defects? How can I best proceed to remedy the defects and improve my living situation?
I thank you in advance for your help and look forward to your support on this matter.
Sincerely,
Dennis Eder
Dear Mr. Eder,
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the deficiencies in your current apartment. It is understandable that you are concerned about your living situation and wondering what rights you have as a tenant in this situation. I will explain to you in detail the legal regulations that protect you and how you can best proceed to remedy the deficiencies.
First of all, it is important to know that the landlord is legally obligated to provide the tenant with a defect-free apartment and to take care of the elimination of defects during the rental period. This is stipulated in § 535 BGB, the Law on Tenancy Agreements. Defects that significantly impair living comfort include mold on the walls, leaky water pipes, and problems with the heating system. In your case, these deficiencies are definitely considered defects under the law.
To remedy the deficiencies and enforce your rights as a tenant, you should first notify your landlady in writing of the deficiencies. It is best to do this by registered mail or email to have proof of the defect notification. Give your landlady a reasonable deadline to rectify the deficiencies, usually 14 days. If the landlady does not respond or does not rectify the deficiencies in a timely manner, you as a tenant have various options to enforce your rights.
One option would be rent reduction, i.e. reducing the rent due to the deficiencies. However, please note that the rent reduction must be appropriate and that you must announce the rent reduction in a timely manner. Another option would be to carry out necessary repairs at your own expense and then claim the costs from the landlady.
If these steps are unsuccessful, as a last resort, you can submit a defect report to the relevant tenant protection association or the local district court. There you can also take legal action to compel the landlady to rectify the deficiencies.
In any case, I recommend that you seek timely and comprehensive advice to enforce your rights as a tenant. I am also available for personal consultation in my online office hours to further clarify your questions and support you in resolving your issue.
I hope my response has been helpful to you and wish you success in rectifying the deficiencies in your apartment.
Best regards,
Gerda Dietrich, Attorney-at-law
