Entering accommodation in Berlin is very different from renting in London. For starters, this is a real estate market with very few owner occupiers. Around 85% of Berliners choose to rent – in London this figure is less than 50% – and tenant protection is strong.
Once a tenant has a long-term legal contract, longer than six months, it is very difficult for a landlord to evict them.
At the same time, a policy known as Nachvertrag makes it legal to buy out an old contract directly from a former tenant and keep the same low rent.
Therefore, as a rule, tenants take care of their properties and invest in them, viewing them as their long-term residences.
How much does it cost?
Germany is the biggest economy in the EU, but while rents in Berlin have long seemed good value for money compared to other major capitals, they have risen rapidly.
In the five years to November 2021, they have climbed 42%, outpacing all other German cities according to real estate website Immowelt.
Young, highly-skilled global workers who have flocked to the city, attracted by its value, vibrant party and cultural scene, and thriving reputation as a tech start-up, often struggle to find affordable housing.
Mitte, the central core of Berlin, has now become the second most unaffordable neighborhood to rent in the whole country according to Homeday Real Estate.
Rents in Berlin
42%: the amount of rent has increased in the five years to 2021
ten%: the amount landlords can raise rent above local prices
The Berlin authorities tried to fight against this sharp escalation in prices. In 2015 they introduced rent control – Mietpreisbremse – which means landlords cannot extend rents beyond 10% of the current rent index for their area, a rate set by local government. This has been fixed by law until 2025.
In January 2020, Berlin authorities went a step further by attempting to freeze rents in Berlin for properties built before 2014 to the level they were at in 2019. This rent cap law – Mietendeckel – also stipulated that any landlord charging more than 20% of “acceptable” rents levels should refund the excess.
Maximum rates have been established for residences, depending on the date of construction, the region and the quality of accommodation. Landlords had to refund overpaid rent to tenants and faced substantial fines if they failed to follow the rules.
Critics of the policy have pointed out that instead of creating more potential housing for rent, it would only discourage landlords from investing in Berlin real estate and worsen the supply and demand situation.
While tenants rejoiced, landlords revolted. In April 2021, the German court ruled that the latter Mietendeckel was unconstitutional and overturned it. The rent freeze was lifted and landlords were able to recover lost rent.
How is it for Londoners who want to rent in Berlin?
After meeting in South Africa, Chloe and Michael Smulian, 36 and 34, quit their jobs to travel abroad in 2019 and became full-time bloggers (nomadandinlove.com provides helpful guides to finding a property in Berlin, secure the all-important anmeldung (the registration of your address) and regional city guides).
They planned a six-month trial to decide where to base themselves, spending three months in the UK before moving to Berlin where they settled, renting a two-bedroom flat in Charlottenburg.
‘In the UK we rented briefly in Croydon but even there rents were expensive and we had such a long commute to work, 90 minutes a day,’ they say.
“We chose Berlin because it’s an easier place to create an independent start-up and the cost of living is better. In London, it was difficult to follow our passion because the high cost of living meant that we both had to go back to the works company.
“In Berlin, it’s easy to live in zones A and B as a freelancer and never be more than a 45-minute bike ride from the city center. We officially moved here in the summer of 2019.”
They chose Charlottenburg in West Berlin because it’s quieter and more family-friendly with a smaller expat community than other central parts of the city. “We love it because we don’t want people outside our apartment still partying at 4am and that can happen in places.
“I never dreamed that I could afford to live alone”
Kyomi Wade documents her life abroad on her blog wading
/ Kyomi WadeKyomi Wade, 30, from Forest Gate, London, is a writer (wadingwade.com) and a marketer who works for an e-commerce company. She rented at Raynes Park and lived in Spain and Colombia before moving to Berlin three years ago. She rents a studio in the trendy district of Neukölln for 700 € per month all inclusive.
She says: “I received moving expenses from the company I was joining, so first I chose to rent accommodation for a month near my friend in Neukölln while I was orienting myself. It was a one bedroom apartment which cost €1100 per month I didn’t think it was good value for money so I looked for a better alternative to move.
“When I collected the keys to my current accommodation and opened the apartment, the previous tenants had left it in a terrible state. The stove was so dirty that when I cleaned it I discovered it was a totally different color than I had thought. It was like they knew they could do it just out of desperation to find an apartment.
“Having said that, the last time I rented in London I didn’t even think I could afford to live on my own.
“In Berlin, a 30-minute drive is considered a long drive and having my own place in the city I love is like winning the lottery. Berlin gave me a lifestyle that I could never have had in London.
Is it easy to find an apartment in Berlin?
Kyomi says: “In London I would leave two to four weeks to find a place to rent, but that just doesn’t work in Berlin. Within three weeks of your arrival you need an Anmelding registration, to register that you live at an address with the local authorities, but you will never find accommodation to rent in three weeks.
“I moved four times, always on short-term rentals, before finding my current apartment.
“I was on a real quest to find an apartment, like most Berliners. You search, see something that looks good with a reasonable price, say €600 per month for a studio or a bedroom, but then realize that almost all the listings are for “exchanges only”, people who have a existing rental agreement and want to swap with someone who also has one but is looking to move out, or get a balcony or downsize. Or the houses are rented directly within friendship groups.
“I was in London for a week when I saw my apartment advert on Facebook and I knew it was what I wanted. But I also knew that if I didn’t see it and I I took it right away, it would leave.
“You have a window of about half an hour to act when you see an ad – seriously – and once you’ve visited it and want it, you need to have all your documents, credit checks included, in your hand.
“I called the owner, did a video tour and asked what I should do to get him to take it off the market. He said he would if I bought his furniture. I didn’t even argue – agreed and had a friend check the place out to make sure it wasn’t a scam.
“Finding a place is stressful and I know that when I’m looking for something new I’m going to be competing with hundreds of people at once.
“My financial profile, my skin color and my level of German will all be factors that will encourage a landlord to choose me as a tenant.
“I’m now too big for my studio and I’m potentially looking for another place to rent in Berlin with a colleague, somewhere closer to nature and the great outdoors. So the process begins again.
“It is common to spend 6 to 12 months looking for an apartment”
Chloe and Michael say: “Most people advise you to rent an apartment short term as soon as you arrive, through Airbnb for example, which is expensive but at least means that you have an address for all the administrators. It’s relatively easy.
“It’s the long-term rental, more than six months, that is difficult and it is common for people to spend at least six to twelve months looking for an apartment that meets their needs.
“Since we arrived, there has always been a housing shortage, but it has gotten worse every year.
“The rental application system is complicated and often landlords don’t even recognize your email. We searched intensively for four months, which meant we checked websites every 15 minutes until we finally secured our current lease.
“We pay €19 per square meter per month including utilities for a ground floor two-bedroom apartment with garden — we have a dog. It’s quite expensive by Berlin standards, but it’s hard to be too picky when there’s such demand for rentals in Berlin.
must know
“Berlin is full of very affordable tenant associations, around €7.50 per month for example, which gives you access to lawyers who give excellent legal advice and will defend your case if necessary. Our landlord knows that we are part of of an association and will therefore carry out the repairs.
“In Berlin it is common to rent without a built-in kitchen and we paid our landlord extra for the kitchen and appliances.
“When our dishwasher broke down, we asked the owner to fix it. We went back and forth for six weeks and finally had to contact the tenant association to send a letter to the landlord. Our dishwasher was then fixed within a week and we got a rent reduction for the six weeks it was out of service,” advise Chloe and Michael.
“I take care of the ongoing repairs myself, nothing bad has ever gone wrong, and I’ve done a lot, redecorated and put pictures. I made sure not to change anything that will be difficult to put back The agreement in Berlin is that when you leave a rental it should be as you found it and that usually means painted white,” says Kyomi.
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