Even renting an apartment without an intermediary, you will not do without additional costs. A deposit or guarantee payment has long become a mandatory condition, without which no home owner will entrust his property to an outsider. It is difficult to accuse him of excessive caution, because we are not talking about a broken cup, but about a run-down apartment, for the repair of which even this money may not be enough. We think that you definitely have no questions about the need for an additional insurance amount. Then we offer to understand what the deposits are, why the owners do not always return them and how to correctly arrange the transfer of money so that you can return it after the termination of cooperation.
What, why, how much - we analyze the deposit item by item
Deposit upon purchase, as with a lease, exists solely to assure the other party of your honesty and trustworthiness. There are two types of deposits when renting:
- insurance deposit. Its amount does not depend on the amount of rent and is determined at the discretion of the property owner. This payment is designed to cover possible costs associated with damage to movable or immovable property due to the tenant's fault. For example, if you didn't believe the word of a YouTube video and decided to heat a raw egg in the microwave..;
- guarantee deposit. It is well known to you under another name - the fee for the last month. That is, its amount is the full monthly rent. It is more designed to protect the landlord from insolvent tenants. When you move in, such a double amount hits the renters' pockets, but when you leave, you get a good financial cushion, so the disadvantages are compensated by the advantages. Of course, if you can get your deposit back, but more on that later.
The second variant of the deposit is the most common on the Ukrainian real estate market, as it is easier to calculate and thanks to clearly prescribed points lease agreement it can still be used in force majeure situations to cover losses.
How to issue a deposit in the contract
Inflate the uninflated? No, everything is much easier with a deposit. You just need to clearly and clearly write down the following nuances:
- deposit amount;
- the possibility of its return;
- return terms;
- situations in which the deposit remains with the property owner.
The last item may include such conditions as the need for repair work due to the fault of the tenant, breakdown of equipment and furniture. Also, the owners often link the clause on the deposit with another clause on early termination of the contract. Yes, if you did not warn the landlord of your intention to terminate cooperation in advance (in most cases, the minimum term is one month), the guarantee amount is not returned, because due to lack of time, the owner is unlikely to be able to find new residents, and therefore he will lose the income he was counting on.
Also, in the contract itself or in the annex to it, it is necessary to indicate:
- a person who has to pay for communal services;
- the condition of the apartment and its contents at the time of transfer to the tenant (it is worth describing even the smallest defects so that you cannot be accused of their appearance);
- the person who has to carry out the repair (referring to situations in which the tenant is not the cause of the same repair);
- the possibility of returning the full amount of the deposit;
- calculation of losses and their write-off from the deposit.
We advise our clients to be sure to make an act of acceptance and transfer. It should include a list of all furniture, appliances, their brands and condition. It will also not be superfluous to make a list of valuables, such as paintings, vases and other decorative elements. You can take a photo of specific objects and attach their photo to the document to facilitate the process and not to resort to their detailed written description. The owner of the apartment draws up the act of acceptance and transfer, but the tenant must check the document with reality.
To summarize: you will lose your deposit if…
💸 decide to terminate cooperation with the tenant earlier than the specified term without prior warning;
💸 you will not pay utility bills on time and will become the cause of debt;
💸 you will not be able to pay for the rent within the specified period;
💸 will damage someone else's property;
💸 accidentally grab other people's things and don't want to return them.
Isn't it easier then to rent an apartment without a deposit? It is so, but where will you find such a fool ... a daredevil who would agree to such a thing? An exception may be your acquaintance or relative. However, even in this case, both parties voluntarily accept certain risks. We advise you not to look for workarounds, but simply to cooperate with reliable people and treat things carefully.
