Bit late to be asking now (and I'm not overly concerned as price is within the realm of reasonable).
I just signed a contract (in double for both the contract and also a pink kanton zurich form (which he then said he would keep both copies of which flagged it up on my mind).
It appears that the rent price had originally been XXX a month in 1993 and was now being let out again from 2020 for an additional 34.5% increase again.
Is it legal to add that much rent onto a place? It's an old fashioned apartment so it's not like he spent 50k renovating it!
Again not a huge concern more just curiosity.
Also I asked him to confirm that the price included everything which he affirmed all bills were included for the flat. But it seems that he has written down in handwriting on "strom" exclusive........which I guess means electricity is not included. he also hand wrote antennen(cant read rest) is exclusiv as well.
Are these likely to be large costs or not a big concern? First time renting so a bit confused. I asked him if I could take the contract away to get it translated and he said absolutely not. But reading around, it seems that "unfair" contracts are not enforceable so I should be protected against anything punitive?
is it possible to upload a picture of the contract? If so, how?
General answers to give some context...
- yes, it's the norm that the prices go up when a new contract starts, since they can't while a contract is running (and this can last decades). In other countries like Italy rental contracts are always time limited and the price can go up every few years depending on the market.
I think in some cases one can ask for a reduction if the new price is unreasonable given the current prices in the neighborhood, but I haven't experience on this.
- yes, current is often excluded from the running costs. Cold water is in my experience usually included, heating depends on the situation (I have it now, I did not have it before). Cable connection usually is, even if you don't have a service subscription.
You really should have settled your concerns and questions properly but it seems it doesn't matter to you if you get taken for a ride or not. And people wonder why newbies to Switzerland are seen as a soft touch.
You really need to get a copy of the contract.
It's normal for your electricity costs to be charged based upon usage, i.e. meter readings. There's an electricity meter for your place? Same for gas.
"Antenna" probably means the UPC cable fee, which these days you shouldn't need to pay for but it might be worth asking.
"Included" means included in what - the rental price or the "Nebenkosten"? The former effectively means you're paying a fixed price for associated costs such as communal areas, heating and water. The latter means (if akonto) that it included in the price you pay on account and can vary at the end of the year - either in your favour or in the landlord's favour.
As for the other question, I don't know. As you say the rent changed in 2020 I'm not sure there's anything you can do about it and anyhow seems that you wouldn't be interested to do anything in any case.
Adding a picture isn't always straightforward but try the options such as "attach an image" or "attach a file". Not sure if cut and paste works.
Sorry should have clarified. I have a copy of the contract, but he kept both copies of the pink kantonal form with the increases in rent. I am taking on the contract now, so the price is 34.5% higher but seems to be the average cost of the area. It had a field for consumer price index that reflected 175% since 1994.
I would have expected if he said all bills are included to have meant electricity as well. If the antenna just means I have to get my own broadband this is okay. I was just afraid it might be communications tax or something like where I am from. It seems that there is a flat rate of 105 CHF which includes heating, hot water and stairwell cleaning (??). So net fee +flat rate fee for total price.
The communication tax exists and is always separate (search for "Serafe").
If you scan or take a picture of the contract, you can extract the text from it then translate the text into your native language. This should help clarify the terms of the contract that you're not sure about.
17 years on & 35% increase sounds fine, it's probably below average market rent as well.
The only reason they could not put it up was the interest rate quoted in the original contract probably has a base rate interest rate of 3.75%
The contract shows interest rate at 1.25%.
The rent went up by a factor of 10 in 2020 and then up by 35% again between 2020 November and now.
Price is 1425 for a 2.5 room in central Zurich so it seems reasonable enough.
I guess my concern was that I do not want to take the room and then be hit with additional costs as he increases the rent again or whatever.
It depends a lot on the area and the conditions of the apartment but I've seen prices far higher than that. In principle "2.5", "central" and "1425" together sound good to me.
Maybe in 1993 there was a lot more drugs and prostitution in that specific area, they were desperate and rented at a very low price...
Do you have discussions in 1 of the Swiss languages? If not, are you being supported by someone linguistically, as it pertains to signing contracts and other legal matters, prior to signing stuff?
No unfortunately I only speak English and his English was quite limited...
I don't have a lot of options as I need a place asap. Hopefully it will work out okay.
It's a couple minutes away from the main train station which is useful.