When you rent out your house for a short or long time, you want to be sure that the tenant pays the rent properly and leaves the house in good condition. To get some guarantee of this as a landlord, it is customary to ask for a deposit. But what is reasonable? Many new landlords struggle with the question of how high the deposit can be.
In this blog, we therefore provide some guidelines.
The amount of the deposit
You can determine the amount of the security deposit based on a number of factors. For example, take into account:
- The time that you rent out the house
- The size of the house and
- The value of the property
- The amount of the rent.
Generally, it is customary for the deposit to be one month's rent. In some cases, such as a long rental, two months' rent is also not an odd amount. More is exceptional, but obviously possible in consultation with the new tenant. There are no legal limits, but do this in consultation. A too high deposit can deter new tenants.
You can start from one month's rent. The tenant must pay this before the start of the rental period or in the first week. Of course, you must determine in advance when the deposit can be claimed.
When can a deposit be retained?
In the normal situation, the landlord returns the deposit to the tenant at the end of the rental period. However, it can happen that something is broken in the house during the rental period and you want to keep part of the deposit. This is possible, but do it in consultation. There is only one thing that is really important here: make proper arrangements in advance about the deposit and when it may be retained, and put this down on paper.
Make sure that both you as landlord and the tenant are clear about the terms of the rental. That someone must pay the rent and not break things is obvious, but put it in writing. And in addition, take into account other agreements. Were there pets? Should the tenant leave the property clean? Did any other issues arise during the rental period? Then you both know where you stand.
Going to rent out a property?
If you decide to rent out a property, we can help you. We have experienced people in our network who can draw up a valid rental contract. Request a free consultation now. Then we will explain exactly how the letting of a property works and what is involved.