When you rent an apartment, the rent itself is only the most visible part of the monthly cost. Management fees, electricity, water, internet and parking are usually billed separately, and disputes tend to start over which of these the landlord pays and which the tenant pays. The simplest fix is to list each item in the lease: who pays, to whom, and how it is calculated.
1. Management fee: ask the building office first
The building management office charges this fee, usually by floor area, monthly or quarterly. Some landlords add it to the rent, others leave it to the tenant. There is no market-wide convention, so do not assume. Ask the office for the current rate and whether the unit has unpaid fees. A unit with unpaid fees from a previous tenant can have its elevator card blocked, and the next tenant is the first to find out.
2. Electricity and water: record the meters on handover day
Write the electricity and water meter readings into the handover record and photograph them with a timestamp. Some buildings charge water at their own rate, which differs from the utility's rate, so ask to see the last two or three bills. A previous tenant's bill is only a reference, because usage differs greatly between a single occupant and a family of four.
3. Internet, parking and access cards
Ask whose name the internet contract is in, and who pays the cancellation fee if the plan ends early. For parking, ask how many motorbike cards each unit gets and whether car spaces are available, since many buildings limit them. Access and parking cards often require a deposit: record who paid it and who gets it back.
4. Common split of costs
| Item | Usually paid by | What the lease should state |
|---|---|---|
| Management fee | Negotiated: included in rent or paid by tenant | Rate, billing period, paying party |
| Electricity, water | Tenant, by meter | Meter readings at move-in and move-out, unit price |
| Internet, TV | Tenant | Contract holder, cancellation fee |
| Parking | Tenant | Number of cards, vehicle type, card deposit |
| Repairs from normal wear | Usually landlord | Line between wear and misuse |
5. Writing it into the lease
Attach a one-page schedule of these costs signed by both sides. Settle the final month's bills before the deposit is returned, or let the landlord deduct actual bills from the deposit, and say so in the lease.
| Remember before signing | |
| 1 | Ask the building office for the current fee and any unpaid balance. |
| 2 | Photograph the electricity and water meters on handover day. |
| 3 | Check whose name the internet contract is in. |
| 4 | Attach a one-page cost schedule signed by both sides. |
This is general information and not legal advice for a specific lease.
