Hi there - I would've put this in the apartment/housing forum but for some reason I can't access it.

Anyway, is it normal for a current tenant to charge a new tenant a "reprise" for costs that he/she incurred doing improvements to the apartment when they lived there (such as painting, new flooring, lighting, etc)? And what would be a reasonable amount for this if it is a normal thing? I can't come across anyone who has ever heard of this or has ever paid this. This is for an apartment in Geneva.

This is not your apartment. You dont own it and neither does the previous tenant. You are a renting it from the owner. Any improvements that occurred during the previous tenancy are really none of your business, as your deal is with the landlord to rent the apartment as-is.

What you describe sounds fishy to me , bizarre at best...

Would I be right in saying that the current tenant will be linking your reaction to whether he puts you forward to the landlord for consideration ?

Ive known this happen with furniture the old tenant doesnt want to shift....

dave

NOPE!

Unless the previous tenant is the OWNER of the flat,but exactly this situation would then rather be reflected in a new lease,e.g the improvemnts made can make the flat a tad more expensive per month ! But it's clearly stated in the Swiss Obligationenrecht that a tenant has to hand back a flat in the state he took it over! All alterations ( paint,laminate flooring,new bathroom taps etc) to it, need the OK from the landlord/owner of that flat!

So if the walls were white upon taking it over, the leaving tenant has to repaint them white again,if he put down some laminate flooring on his own costs, he MIGHT (but only MIGHT) strike a deal with the landlord of getting the cost of material back.
BUT NEVER can a leaving tenant charge a new tenant,exception would be if you were to take over(i.e. buy) some furniture,then you might have to pay for it.But even if he doesn't want to take down the lamps for example you are not obliged to A) take them over nor b) pay for them!!!

It seems to me a case of 'let's fleece the stupid foreigner who has no clue about the dealings here' !!!!

Don't fall for it!!

Actually it does happen in Geneva. Not saying that it's common, but it happens. Tight market, people don't argue. Highest I've seen was CHF18k.

Wow! Paying for something thats not yours to someone that doesn't own it. It sounds like landing slots.

dave

As Shorrick Mk2 said, this certainly happens in Geneva, but I've only seen it for items left in the flat (appliances, lights, custom curtains). But you certainly can negotiate. We took over (i.e bought) the washing machine, but said we didn't want the lights. Of course, they didn't bother taking them down. So we got those for free.

Because of the tight market, many people just go ahead & pay the "reprise". I don't know about the painting & new flooring etc. We painted the kitchen in that apartment & even thought the new tenant wanted to keep the paint (it was lovely blue), the landlord refused, painted it white & charged us for it.

Thanks for the input everyone! My initial instinct was to agree with DaveA and Eastenders. However, as expressed by Shorrick and MiniMia people who have lived in Geneva seem to have definitely seen this before. It turns out the owner is aware of this and will actually be handing out a price sheet of the costs asked by the tennant at the visit! It sounds like a way for the owner to get brand new shiny things in his apartment without any costs to him!

Anyway, I defintely think negotiation is in order if we end up getting this apartment... Thanks again!

A lot of old apartments don't come with some of the standard features. Like lights or mirrors in the bathroom etc. that sort of thing. It is not uncommon for prior tenants to ask if you would like to purchase those things from them to remain in the apartment as you would need to buy them anyways. Of course, often if you say no they will just leave them there because if they needed them they would take them.

But as far as charging you for them painting the apartment, that sounds a little hinkey to me. The apartment needs to be in the exact same condition when they move out as when they moved in. If they chose to paint it, or needed to paint it to repair damages that is nothing that an incoming tenant should be responsible for.

That reminds me though, I've seen some adds where people advertise an apartment for rent (not necessarily the landlord, but tenants looking for replacements so they can get out of their lease) who then state they don't want anybody who won't take their furniture for a certain price. (an example, a couple was looking for a replacement but basically wouldn't refer them onto the landlord unless you agreed to pay them CHF 1200 for their old Ikea furniture). Is this not a bit f--d?

That happened to my friends - the only way they could get an appartment in Zurich (lost out to at least 6) was by buying the furniture off the guy so that he'd recommend them...

Fun and games