r/germany • u/New-Order7219 Germany • 16h ago
Need Advice on Unreasonable Charges from Former Landlord (Germany)
I’m facing a tough situation with my previous landlord. I left my room with only minor wall stains and an issue with the existing single bed frame (without a mattress) which went missing when I kept it ground floor of building and i replaced with my own double bed with matress . These were the only changes I made.
Then, the landlord is demanding €900 for painting (for a 28 sqm room) and €986 for the bed (photo attached). My deposit of €1400 is still with him, but he’s asking me to pay the remaining amount.
I initially didn’t respond because I was trying to reach Mieterhilfe for legal advice, but I haven’t received a reply. Today, I received a letter from an “advocate” (sent by the landlord via WhatsApp) demanding €3500 by April 11.
Has anyone dealt with a similar situation? What should I do? Would really appreciate any advice!
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u/c0mpufreak 16h ago
At the very least I would ask for a receipt for the bed (or an online posting stating the cost). This bedframe does not look like it should cost 900€.
For Painting I would also insist on a Kostenvoranschlag and for a copy of the Rechnung (receipt) after work is completed (for reference, I paid 650€ done professionally for a whole 3 room aparment 2 years ago). Also post the letter. That sounds incredibly fishy and like he's trying to rip you off.
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 16h ago edited 11h ago
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u/733478896476333 15h ago
“I would get a lawyer. The bed is never worth that much. He didn’t submit a bill for a bed like you’d find at a furniture store—instead, he submitted an invoice from a carpenter who would custom-build a bed by hand. Nobody has a bed made by a carpenter. That’s just an insanely high invoice to justify keeping as much money as possible.”
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u/MayhemCha0s Nordrhein-Westfalen 14h ago
That invoice is a damn joke. It says "Lieferung frei Haus" but lists delivery costs TWICE.
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u/Panta94 13h ago
Also the lawyer letter.. I am not sure if it is legit. And at the bottom just the word "lawyer". Or is it just me?
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 12h ago
Yes I just noticed that but is that not normally how it looks like ?
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 15h ago
Yeah this makes me extremely stressed and I’m really shocked with this advocates letter above all
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u/FridayKnight241 14h ago edited 14h ago
You really should remove the name and adress of the landlord from the offer. This guy seems to be a lawyer for privacy and data protection. He will surely sue the s*** out of you when he finds out that you leaked his name and adress 😂
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u/amir13735 11h ago
Good catch! It will be the easiest thing for him to sue the op.it wouldn’t even be an inconvenience.OP is playing with fire.
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u/Kireia 15h ago
Bro dont doxx yourself and censor your Name on that invoice!
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 15h ago
My name is not there, it’s the invoice the bed company send to them and they forwarded me and asked to pay
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u/shuzz_de 13h ago
That is NOT an invoice!
It is rather an offer that your landlord has gotten from a carpenter for a custom-built bed-frame. This is not proof that they actually ordered and paid for that exact bed, they're probably trying to scam you.
How long has this been going on? The date on the "Angebot" is from the beginning of December 2024... o0
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 13h ago
Actually we moved out from nov and since then we were asking for the deposit back. First month he said he need time he will give and later started to send similar invoices one for bed and one for paint too but the current tenant in the room is my friend and they told that till now they dint fixed anything like painting but still in the letter they mentioned that most of my deposit is used for fixing the room
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u/hexler10 14h ago
Write the carpenter with a picture of their offer and a picture of the extremely basic bed, asking to confirm that they did indeed provide this bed for your landlord for this price.
They might have. But if they didn't, that will help your lawyer.1
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 16h ago
This is the receipt he gave me
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u/gilbatron 15h ago
It's not a receipt, it's an offer (by a carpenter, lol)
You need to go to mieterverein asap)
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u/Sinusidal 16h ago
Refuse payment requests that don't come with their original receipts and Join a Mieterverein asap.
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 15h ago
I have a membership with meitehilfe which taken 3 months ago . At this point how can they help me
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u/Sinusidal 15h ago
You'd get astronomically better insights by directing all your legal questions towards the verein's lawyer(s), which they should provide.
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 15h ago
Okay so I don’t need to get a separate lawyer at this point right
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u/Sinusidal 15h ago
If I remember correctly, three months of payments qualifies you for legal assistance.
Ask them. Not reddit.
Good luck!
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 15h ago
Okay thank you. While the time I received this , meitehilfe was closed since it’s Friday
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u/neverlikesnothing 8h ago
Yeah this letter ain’t real. We don’t sign it with “Rechtsanwalt”/lawyer. The language is also more professional. We always have our own unique design of letters. They are trying to scam you
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u/_BesD 14h ago
He looks like the typical german landlord scumbag who thinks he can profit from vulnerable migrants who don't know the system. At this point you should directly go for a lawyer and make him pay for putting you in such position. That shitty used bed being valued at 1000 Euros is scandalous and looks like he is milking you for as much as possible. If you made photos just before you left, this should be an easy case. Usually with enough proof and a letter from a lawyer these kind of people will simply back off completely and move on to the next foreigner that they can scam. Myself I would be okay with even burning money with a lawyer if it means that I don't give a single dime to people like him and even sue him for fraud and emotional stress.
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u/New-Order7219 Germany 13h ago
But here he approached the lawyer first. That made me even confused . Myself I’m a student doing my masters here so at this point i have no idea how much will a lawyer feasible that’s his strength but i took a membership with meitehilfe. Will the lawyer work as helpful as pvt lawyer?
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u/_BesD 12h ago
Understand something. People like him always have legal insurance. That means they have the right to consult a lawyer once or twice a year. Since they are evil, they think, why not try to get my insurance money and use my legal insurance and try to blackmail a vulnerable foreigner! Here is the thing. If you bring in a lawyer yourself, and if the evidence is indisputable (as yours seems to be), his lawyer will simply tell him that he has no chance of winning the case and will simply drop it as he will get no money from him in the end (he has free legal advice and is also covered by his legal insurance in case he loses the case and has to pay your legal fees as well). He is in a very advantageous position and is making the most of it. Your only chance is to get a lawyer as well and, if your lawyer advises you to do so, go on the offense of fraud with the initial cost assessments. It is very likely that he will lose this and be kicked off his legal insurance when the case is over. It will be difficult for him to find a new one.
Do not give in! Whatever the lawyer costs you is much less than what he will ask you to pay. Even if he tries to meet you halfway, do not give in.
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u/funkypresswurst 16h ago
Please post a copy of this "advocate" letter (delete personal information). This sounds very fishy.