I am terrified, my first contract in German has just arrived.
We are moving in 2.5 weeks to Switzerland and I just received the contract for our temporary apartment

der preis für die oben genannte 4.5 zimmer boardinghouse, 3 . stock betragt pro monat 5000 exkl. 3.8% MWST und ist zahlbar im voraus am 1 tag des monats

Does it mean I need to pay extra 3.8% VAT?

Is it usual that price mentioned in the advertising (in homegate for example) does not include VAT?

Perhaps for the rental of garage space and for the Nebenkosten.

Since its a temp accom they probably assume it is often paid by a company that can deduct the VAT. Thus the price excl VAT.

And the 3.8% indicates that the accom is classified as "hotel".

If you can afford 5000 a month in rent which is as much as many people here earn as net income a month, I guess you can pay the extra 190 CHF without going hungry.

Or join the MV for expert assistance. Membership is less than CHF80 a year and English is widely spoken ( an association for Renters ).

http://www.mieterverband.ch/zh_top.0.html

Well, it is a very high rent for us, but for many reasons, we don't have a choice and we will use it as temporary living solution for couple of months. I was concerned more of the fact that I might be surprised with our permanent contract, and see that VAT again over there.

It might be added to a garage or parking space but not normal rent. Be aware that expenses can be far higher than quoted & they have 5 years to send the final bill!

No, you won't. That's only going to happen with accommodations designed for short-term coverage (i.e. hotels as mentioned above). Normally (i.e. longer term accommodation) you only have to worry about whether the Nebenkosten (utilities and similar charges) are included, and whether the amount is actually sufficient to the costs (if not, and it's not indicated as paschal in the contract, then you'll get a bill up to a year later to cover the difference).

Its actually CHF 92 now but indeed a good idea to join.

When I joined 3 years ago, it was CHF65 .. sigh ..

This kind of rent is usually company paid anyway in most cases, as it probably is for the poster. They will probably pay for the VAT too I guess if asked.

Yes. Worry about this. We just got a bill for over 800 francs for 5.5 months on top of the 190CHF we pay monthly. I learned that next time we sign a contract, I should ask to see the last year's detailed breakdown per apartment to get an idea of whether their fees are anywhere near sufficient or not and not accept, "Oh sometimes it's a little more, sometimes a little less." Because sometimes it's a LOT more.

Live and learn I guess.

you probably found that MV cannot help you in this case if you are in temporarily accommodation as that is "serviced apartment" and is classified as hotel/B&B. However it is a good idea to join especially if you will be renting later on. VAT in CH is very very low compare to other parts of Europe, imagine you have to pay 22%!!

I know that is expensive but think about all bills included and you just need your suitcase to move in. That is convenient. When I was looking for my own place, I was in one of those as well and someone at work told me, look very carefully and not jump on the first one that is available because it will cost you a lot if you need to move and it is guaranteed that amount of money will be more than what you paying temporarily.