landlord asks to pay deposit to his private account

Accomodation, House and Garden
1
Hi,

I have found a property in Zurich and the landlord asks me me to pay 3 months deposit to his private bank account.

I am aware that it should be a special account

https://www.ubs.com/ch/de/private/ac...s-account.html

Is it a normal practice to pay cash directly to landlord?

Thanks

2
Since you're aware, why are you asking whether it is normal practice when you clearly know it's not?

3
No, it is not standard.

4
We have done it, the landlord then sets up an account in your name.

Pretty normal, actually.

Tom

5
Yes, it is common - the law states that the landlord must pay it into a protected escrow account, but (strangely imo) doesn't say that has to be set up in advance and the money moved directly.

I'd include a polite note "I look forward to receiving the details of the protected deposit account within the next 14 days" or something similar, to make it clear you know this should happen.

6
Yes or just tell him you will open it up at UBS on your own. Does not require his signature unless it's more than 10k deposit.

7
It is perfectly legal and it happens in some situations. Like if the handover is in a few days, like tomorrow. The deposit must usually have been paid before the handover. Otherwise the landlord might refuse the handover but you nevertheless would have to pay the rent. If the handover is in a week or two, a proper deposit account, running on the tenants name, can be opened w/o any issues.

The deposit has only to be paid once both parties have signed the rental contract.

DO NOT PAY ANY DEPOSIT IF THE CONTRACT HAS NOT BEEN SIGNED. DO NOT PAY OR DEPOSIT ANYTHING FOR AN APARTMENT VIEWING

As you accordingly have a copy of it, you can do as kri has said. However, it might have do be done by mail and cannot be done in person at a UBS branch. If the handover is tomorrow and it has to be done by mail it will take too much time and you have to bite the bullet and pay the landlord directly.

If you pay to the landlord, follow up on the opening of the mandatory deposit account. If not done so within good time, write a registered letter where you demand the opening of the account and mention that otherwise the next X rents, up to the amount of the deposit, will be paid into an escrow account at the rental court.

8
Why is the landlord making this request? Did you ask him instead of here?

Some possible reasons for this request:

The property is available immediately and he wants to be sure you won't change your mind? This can happen, contract is signed but then the deposit is not paid. For all the threads about terrible landlords, there are probably just as many tenants who have also not behaved properly.

Did the landlord say he would set up an account for the deposit ?

It isn't "normal practice" to pay the deposit directly to the landlord's account but it is done more often than you think. Property managers do this very often so they don't get stuck with a signed contract but no deposit is paid.

The fact is the landlord cannot keep the money in his private account. So legally you have the law on your side, but it is a hassle and could sour the relationship between you and the landlord.

It is always best to start off on the right foot where landlord/tenant matters are concerned. Without knowing the circumstances I am not saying you should or shouldn't pay the deposit to him. I suggest you speak to the landlord directly. Then by all means update this thread so we know what happened.

What I can tell you from experience is that it is a lot faster to get the deposit back when you move out when it is sitting in the landlord's private account.

Edit: Looks like I wasn't quick enough to reply.

9
If you are a UBS account holder it's done on the spot at any branch. Nowadays branches are still open. You just need a copy of the signed rental contract and go there.

10
Sending you more information by PN but don't want to get into trouble for naming someone publicly.... I would insist on a separate account in your name and immediate confirmation that the payment has been made. I know three people personally who have had trouble with getting their deposit back and part of the problem was that the money was not in account under their name.

11
That's the way to do it. Never pay direct to the Landlord.

12
If the deposit is in the rental surety account, if the landlord wants to be difficult it can be at least one year before the money is released. There have been enough stories here from tenants with landlords who refuse to sign off on the account to release the funds. Often there is no justification for these actions. The tenant has no options but to wait.

If the landlord has the tenant's deposit in his personal account, where it should never have remained, getting it back is not going to be as above where the landlord does what he wants when he feels like it. The law is on the tenant's side.

13
Last, and only time I've paid a deposit, it was to the landlord, who opened an account in my name.

BUT, the agency dealing with it also dealt with my normal apartment for the prior 15 years, and since they obviated a lot of the normal BS for me (it was for my girlfriend/wife, but we did it in my name for this reason), I didn't see a problem.

When we gave it up (it was technically a commercial space), I got 100% of the deposit back after a month and change.

Tom

14
We made the mistake of paying the deposit directly to the landlord (who incidentally, lives above us). At the time, we were new arrivals and didn't think much about it. Until, that is, our landlord tried to increase our nebenkosten a year after we moved in - even though it was based on "pauschal" as opposed to "inclusiv".

I consulted the mieterverband (highly recommend!) and they explained our rights and also suggested that I make sure that the landlord set up our initial deposit in a separate account in our name.

As luck would have it, my conversation with our landlord went really well; I suspect, that she was unaware of the deposit term conditions and the difference between "paschal" and "inclusiv". (We are her first tenant).

Perhaps consult with the mieterverband and then approach your landlord? Try and give the landlord the benefit of the doubt as they may not be fully aware of the law.

Here's a link to Mieterverband Zurich website:

https://www.mieterverband.ch/mv-zh/h...achleuten.html