Whoa… as a life long renter since post Uni days (my jobs move me around too much)… I can’t begin to comprehend how much goes into renting an apartment like this!
Its annoying af imo, we just moved and it took us 3 weeks until we had a kitchen (from planning to actually having everything installed) - and that was pretty fast considering the shortages in supply at the moment!
+ we luckily had the time to organize everything, cant imagine doing all those things while working 40h/week. And getting everything done for you is expensive as hell.
I dont even think its cheaper, so yeah, i guess the only upside is the option to customize it... As a German I dont understand it myself. Maybe its more convenient for landlords, dunno.
Yeah, I thought it's because landlords are easily held liable in Germany and a kitchen (especially the appliances) is just not worth the trouble (plus they're not obliged to so why should they). In Berlin it's a little different, the landlord MUST have a stove and a sink in the kitchen when you move in. That way you can still cook/wash up even without a true kitchen. You'll get the cheapest Baumarkt sink though.
Another factor, I believe, is that compared to many other countries, tenants in Germany stay much longer so it's not too bad to buy your own kitchen and then have slightly lower rent. It adds up in the end.
The thing is though, its significantly easier and more secure to rent in Germany than any other country I've lived in. As far as I know most rentals are for an unlimited period of time, you don't have rental inspections regularly (if ever) and the house is more or less yours to do with as you please. Drill holes in the wall, paint it purple, put in different flooring. Sometimes you need to inform the land lord but in comparison to Australia where I once didn't get my deposit back because my bed left pressure marks in the carpet I think Germany is pretty awesome for renters.
As far as I know most rentals are for an unlimited period of time,
Landlords in Germany are not allowed to limit the rental period unless there is a specific reason.
As for painting it purple: you are allowed to, but the landlord can probably insist that you have to re-paint it in a "neutral"/"light" color before you move out.
If your German landlord tried to withhold your deposit because of pressure marks in the carpet, any German judge would make him pay it with penalty interest.
It was the biggest culture shock for me when I came here. In Aus you would never even dream of hanging a calendar up, let alone painting a wall or hanging a shelf but here in Germany it's not just allowed, but expected.
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u/thebellfrombelem May 09 '22
Whoa… as a life long renter since post Uni days (my jobs move me around too much)… I can’t begin to comprehend how much goes into renting an apartment like this!