I’m an incoming international student about to sign this contract for a room (after a monumental struggle with the Zurich housing market), but I’m having last-minute anxiety. Does it look legit?

by nebraska7064

6 comments

  1. Yes, looks standard. The important is that you wire the money to a bank account specific for deposit of caution, not the personal one of the landlord.

  2. Yes, but Swiss rental contracts – especially subleases – do not really need to have a specific form. So that alone doesn’t tell you a lot.

    Things that make this legit:

    – Deposit due on the date of moving in (rather than beforehand) and of a reasonable amount. Scammers woudl ask for that beforehand.

    Things that must be still defined:

    – Where does the deposit go? It should go into a specific deposit account in your name, or at least you need to trust the guy to open such an account for you and send it there.

    – How about the Fernseh-Abgabe? Is it to be split equally?

    – The main renter’s contract should be a part of the agreement, and you should have a copy or at least the chance to read it.

    What gives you second thoughts?

  4. Yes. Not the best rental contract I’ve ever seen but nothing really extraordinary.

  5. I would be worried about the last sentence. I am guessing normal wear and tear would be considered as such and not be billed.

    But I also know that illegal parts of Mietverträge don’t count.

    Maybe someone else can add to this.

  6. A minor thing but I would also ask about the laundry situation. How it works, do you pay per load? How much? How often can you do laundry, are there assigned time slots or can you reserve one? Is there a dryer? Etc.

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