Rental problems? Get free legal advice
Questioner
I have a question. I rented a house last year with an estate agent as an intermediary. It now turns out that he was asking me €50.00 more per month than he was paying the landlord. He says these are administration costs, but in my opinion they cannot be charged monthly, is this correct? There is also nothing separately stated in the rental agreement about the €50 administration costs, but they are included in the contract as rent. Furthermore, I had to pay €250 at the start of the rental. I transferred this as 'brokerage costs'. I don't think the broker is allowed to charge me those costs, right? The client (landlord) has already paid costs for this.Lawyer
The Supreme Court has ruled that administration/brokerage costs may not be charged by the broker when renting. You can reclaim these directly. If you wish, you may contact me directly for further information or legal assistance.Questioner
Jeroen, thank you for your answer. Mediation costs and administration costs are different things. I now know that the brokerage costs may not be charged to the tenant. I don't know about the administration costs. And IF it is allowed, is it a one-off or monthly?Lawyer
If the administration costs are excessive, this is not permissible and is seen as disguised agency costs. Collecting €50 administration costs every month, disguised over the rent, is not permissible. Clarity must be given about the costs you pay. You can simply reclaim these costs. In my opinion, this is a form of fraud/scam. If you would like further information or a helping hand, please feel free to contact me directly.Questioner
Dear Jeroen, I told the agent that I wanted my money back and substantiated this and to make a long story short, he doesn't want to pay. Where can I go to get my money back? To a dispute committee?Lawyer
You can contact me directly in a private message for further information.Neem de volgende stap
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