Letting a flat in Vienna: what does the agent do, and what does it cost?

The essentials in brief

• For rented flats the Bestellerprinzip (the "whoever orders, pays" rule) has applied since 1 July 2023: if the owner engages the agent, the owner pays, not the tenant (§ 17a MaklerG).
• The agent may charge the landlord at most three gross monthly rents plus 20% VAT.
• The fee falls due only if the tenancy agreement takes legal effect (§ 7 MaklerG).
• Whether a freely agreed rent is permissible or the Mietrechtsgesetz (Tenancy Act) sets limits — the Richtwert (statutory reference rent), the category system — depends on the year of construction, on subsidies and on the fit-out. We check that before the listing goes out.
• The listing must state the energy indicators required by law; the Energieausweis (energy performance certificate) must be presented in good time before the buyer or tenant makes a binding contractual declaration — i.e. before a binding purchase offer (Kaufanbot) — and handed over after the contract is concluded.
• We broker only in Austria and advise in German, Russian, Ukrainian and English.

What does the agent do when letting a flat?

The agent takes off your hands the work between an empty flat and a signed tenancy agreement. What decides the outcome is less the listing than two checks: what rent is legally permissible, and whether the tenant can pay it for the long run.

What does letting with an agent cost?

You pay only if a tenancy agreement comes about. We agree the level of the fee in writing before we start; the law permits at most three gross monthly rents plus 20% VAT from the landlord.

For the tenant the flat is commission-free. An agreement that nevertheless imposes a commission on the tenant would be void under § 17a MaklerG. All the maximum amounts at a glance: Agent commission in Austria.

How the letting works, step by step

From the instruction to the handover of the keys there are six steps:

1. First conversation and viewing of the flat. We look at the condition, the fit-out and the documents.
2. Rent check. We establish what rent is legally permissible and achievable on the market.
3. Agency agreement. We record the fee, the term and your criteria for tenants in writing.
4. Listing and viewings. Photographs, listing, pre-selection of applicants, appointments.
5. Choosing the tenant. We put checked applicants in front of you; the decision is yours.
6. Tenancy agreement and handover. Contract, deposit, handover protocol with photographs and meter readings.

What rent is permitted in Vienna?

That depends on the building, not on the market alone. In period buildings with a building permit issued before 1945 and in subsidised buildings, the Mietrechtsgesetz usually applies in full, with a Richtwert rent; in many new buildings and in owner-occupied flats in new buildings a freely agreed rent is possible. A rent set too high can be reclaimed by the tenant years later before the Schlichtungsstelle (arbitration board) — which is why we check this before the listing, not after. Current reference rents and rent levels: Property prices in Vienna.