Berlin rent cap: is your rent too high?
We review your rent free of charge and explain the next legal steps clearly.
Free initial assessment · No obligation · Assessed by a lawyer
Rent calculator: compare your rent with the 2026 Berlin rent index
✔ Reviewed by a lawyer
✔ No assignment of your claims
✔ No deduction from your refund
✔ GDPR-compliant
Transparent · efficient · legally sound
What the rent cap means in Berlin
The rent cap limits how high net cold rent may be at the start of a tenancy: usually the local comparative rent plus 10 percent. In Berlin the benchmark is the qualified 2026 rent index.
Whether that is unlawful in your case depends on the contract: start date, previous rent, modernisation, furnishing and statutory exceptions.
Frequently asked questions
- Does the rent cap still apply in Berlin in 2026?
- Yes. Berlin is a designated tight housing market. Whether it applies to your contract depends on the start date (from 1 June 2015), exceptions such as new builds, and the details of the tenancy agreement.
- How do I tell if my rent is too high?
- Orientation comes from the qualified Berlin rent index 2026 plus 10%. Our rent calculator shows that range. Whether you have a claim still depends on the previous rent and the contract.
- Can I recover overpaid rent?
- If the rent cap applies, rent above the cap can often be reclaimed for a limited period. That needs a case-by-case legal review — not a calculator result.
- What does the first assessment cost?
- The initial review is free and without obligation. You only instruct us if you want us to proceed.
How it works
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1. Legal Review
Free initial assessment. Answer a few questions and we will review whether your rent is likely too high.
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2. Engagement
The decision is yours. Costs only arise if you formally engage us – transparently and in accordance with the law.
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3. Formal letter to the landlord
A legally required step. We assert the rent reduction and, where applicable, the repayment of overpaid rent out of court.
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4. Result
Often successful at this stage. In many cases, the rent is already reduced on a binding basis at this point.
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5. Court proceedings (only if necessary)
Enforcement of your rights. If no agreement can be reached, we will represent you fully in court if you wish.
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6. Completion
Clear billing. Once the matter is concluded, we settle the account transparently — any advance payments are credited.
Success stories
- Berlin-Wilmersdorf (Mainzer Straße) – furnished sublet: rent reduced from €1,200 to €750, €900 repaid and €2,070 of the deposit released
Out-of-court settlement in Wilmersdorf: furnished sublet, net cold rent from about €1,200 to €750, €900 repaid and €2,070 of the deposit released — within a few weeks.
- Berlin-Moabit (Huttenstraße) – rent reduced from €723 to €690 and €779 repaid
Out-of-court settlement in Moabit: 59.80 m² period flat, net cold rent reduced retrospectively to €689.63, €779 repaid — modernisation exception failed on form.
- Berlin-Wedding (Cambridger Straße) – rent reduction €1,460 → €595, ~€10,810 claimed (pending)
Wedding, simple location: €1,460 net cold rent vs. €595.21 permitted. About €10,810 claimed — proceedings pending.
- Berlin-Weißensee (Heinersdorfer Straße) – reduction from about €1,500 to about €860 and about €2,900 claimed (pending)
Weißensee: €1,502 split across flat, cellar and bicycle contracts; about €860 permitted, €2,918 including deposit claimed — pending.
- Berlin-Lichtenberg (Hohenschönhauser Straße) – partly furnished sublet: €680 → €460, ~€2,340 claimed (pending)
Partly furnished sublet in Lichtenberg — pending. Permissible net cold rent about €460 versus €1,000 all-inclusive; head lease about €570.
- Berlin-Mitte (Alte Jakobstraße) – partly furnished apartment: €1,009 → €698, €785 deposit claimed (pending)
Mitte, 40 m², €25.22/m². Permitted €698.24 under the 2026 rent index; €785.28 deposit claimed — pending. Objection after 30 months.
- Berlin-Steglitz (Albrechtstraße) – rent reduction €1,849 → €1,278, ~€6,857 claimed (pending)
Period building in Steglitz — pending. 153.63 m² at €1,849 net cold rent, permitted €1,277.59. The contract ticks none of the rent-cap exceptions.
- Berlin-Moabit (Bochumer Straße) – Rent Reduced from €1,500 to €750 and €22,500 Repayment
- Berlin-Moabit (Stephanstraße) – Rent Reduced from €1,190 to €661.97 and €5,700 Repayment
- Berlin-Friedrichshain: Significant Rent Reduction Achieved Through an Out-of-Court Settlement
- Berlin-Friedrichshain (Niederbarnimstraße) – Rent Reduced from €995 to €725 and €1,000 Repayment
Out-of-court settlement in Friedrichshain: net cold rent reduced from €995 to €725, €1,000 repaid — case concluded by supplementary agreement.
- Berlin-Moabit (Havelberger Straße) – Rent Reduced from €1,157 to €990 and €2,807 Repaid
Out-of-court settlement in Moabit: 105 m² period apartment, net cold rent reduced to €990.41, €2,806.80 repaid — no assignment or commission.
- Rent Reduced by More Than One Quarter – Out-of-Court Settlement Following a Rent Cap Objection
- Berlin-Moabit (Wiclefstraße) – Rent Reduced from €700 to €550 and €1,500 Repayment
- Berlin-Moabit (Stephanstraße) – Rent Reduction from €990 to €660 and Repayment of €865 Claimed (Pending)
- Berlin-Moabit (Emdener Straße) – Rent Reduction €520 → €333, ~€1,565 Repayment Claimed (Pending)
Stepped rent Moabit — proceedings pending. Net cold rent €520 vs. ~€330 permissible; defects and ~€1,500 repayment at issue.
- Berlin-Moabit (Rostocker Straße) – Rent Reduced from €270 to €215 and €1,000 Repayment
Out-of-court settlement in Moabit: net cold rent for a 30 m² apartment reduced from €270 to €215, around €1,000 repaid.
Ready to take the first step?
Answer a few short questions – we check for free whether you have a claim.
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