Rent Increase and Eviction: Need Legal Advice?

Questioner

We have been renting an apartment to our adopted daughter of 21 since 1-11-2016. The calculated rent is currently € 409 per month. This is substantially lower than the market-conform rental price, which according to the calculation should be between €700 and €800. We have deliberately kept the rent low so that our daughter is still eligible for housing benefit. After all, we could give her the difference between what we were asking for in rent and the market-rate rent tax-free. The relationship between us and our daughter has now become so strained that we are no longer prepared to give her between €291 and €391 per month. We would like her to leave our apartment. Questions: What rent may we charge as of 1-11-2017? If our daughter is not prepared to leave in consultation with us, can we put her under pressure by formally informing the tax authorities that we will no longer give her anything. She may then receive a supplementary assessment. The situation that has arisen is, by the way, extremely unpleasant for all of us.

Lawyer

If there is a rental contract, it will still be difficult; is it a fixed-term or indefinite-term contract and is there any extension? If you no longer give her anything, she will not automatically receive a surcharge. The rent can go up if you are no longer obliged to make a gift, but that should be included in the rental contract.

Questioner

There is a rental contract. Indefinite period. Nothing is stipulated about donations. Rent increase annually. But now the question is whether this is a free sector or social housing

Lawyer

No, because the home normally has a value above the liberalization threshold. The current contract is dubious in the sense that it can also be given the predicate of a user agreement for habitation because the consideration (rent) is not in proportion to the rented property. A user agreement can be terminated in a different way than a rental contract. However, this will cause a problem later if the tax authorities find out because then allowances have been granted unjustly all that time.

Questioner

So it is quite complicated. We do not want to burden our daughter with unnecessary costs, but we do want to put pressure on her to find another home as soon as possible. She does not want to have anything to do with us anymore, her choice. If you say A, you must also say B. It cannot be the case that she is still profiting from us (rent is not in line with the market) while at the same time she has broken off all contact. If she does not leave voluntarily, then we can only enforce this by going to court? That also applies to a rent increase. She doesn't want to pay that either. Legally, we can increase the rent by at least 2.8% (social housing)?

Lawyer

I understand your reaction, but the question is of course whether this is the right way to go. This will only worsen the relationship. Perhaps your daughter wants to be independent and it is difficult to rent elsewhere (that is a fact) and this causes frustration. For example, is she registered for social housing? The waiting times can be enormous depending on the region (5 to ten years). I think I can exert some pressure by making it clear to her in a letter that there is no actual rental contract but a user agreement subject to conditions. Perhaps she will then see that she has to fly out elsewhere and/or that she is obliged to pay more in line with the market, possibly in a step-by-step plan. You could also consider settling this matter with a mediator because polarizing and legalizing the relationship could lead to it being damaged too seriously.

Questioner

The relationship is so disturbed that we do not expect it to ever be okay. As parents, we feel abused and unappreciated. She has done and said things that are really unacceptable. In addition, she wants to live with a man, whom we do not know by the way. We obviously do not want to make our apartment available for that. Even though we can then increase the rent substantially, partly in view of the provisions in the lease. Unfortunately, our daughter has her limitations, her perception is often at odds with reality and she can often only remember negative experiences. The very difficult contact that still exists is through a supervisor she has. This is paid via a Personal Budget. However, the supervisor is not a mediator. Our daughter is also not interested in mediation. In her eyes, we are 'crazy' and she is normal. We do not want to push the matter further either. She is still studying, but that is not going so well at all. Through the grapevine we have also heard that she is still looking for a good therapist. Who knows, she may come to her senses one day. Thanks for the reactions and advice.