Rental tips

Rental contracts

When you agree to rent an apartment and before you move into it, a security deposit is required, as a financial guarantee in case of damage to the apartment, which is usually equivalent to one month’s rent. The deposit will be returned to you when you move out of the apartment, provided that you have paid the last rent, the apartment is in good condition and clean, without any damages. Additionally, to the deposit, you also pay one month’s rent in advance. It is common that rent is paid in the beginning of each month.

Always make sure to see the room or apartment before you agree to rent it. If this is not possible, because you want to secure it before your arrival, you can ask a friend or colleague to check it out before you sign a rental contract or make any payments.

Make sure that you transfer the money to an official bank account and keep the receipt (in order to have some kind of guarantee). For no reason do not perform transactions through other monetary companies. Never pay anything before you sign a rental contract. Also, before signing the contract, make sure you clarify the notice period and if there is a possibility for an early termination of the contract. Usually tenants can leave the apartment before the contract ends, after they give a notice, but landlords don’t have the right for eviction earlier than the end of the contract, unless they have some serious reason. However, this is not always the case and sometimes is stated differently in the contract.

Make sure to be aware of all the terms of the rental contract before signing it, the rights and obligations of the tenant and landlord as well as any house rules. Sometimes there are restrictions, such as the number of people that can rent the apartment or pets are not allowed. These should be discussed with the landlord before renting the place.

Utilities

The costs for electricity, water, heating, telephone and internet are not included in the rent and usually are paid monthly according of the usage of the household.

For some utilities such as electricity and water there is already a provider who is supplying these and it is arranged by the landlord. You just need to notify the provider to send you, the new tenant, the bill.

Regarding heating, the apartment will provide a specific type and you can ask the landlord before you rent it. Depending on the type of the heating system of the apartment there are meters that indicate the usage (gas). In case the building has a central heating system all tenants pay a few times a year to buy heating fuel.

For telephone and internet, usually you have to sign up with the providers you prefer.

Another addition to the rent, that you will need to pay if you are living in an apartment are charges for the shared building costs. The landlord can inform you about these before you sign the contract.

Home insurance

Home insurance is not required by the tenants. Individually someone can get an insurance for the household contents, which covers damage to or loss of personal possessions, while these are located within their house, as a result of fire, water damage or theft etc. It is not very common and it is only worth having it if you have valuable possessions.

Helpful websites for home search:

https://en.spitogatos.gr/to_rent-homes/thessaloniki-center

https://www.spiti24.gr/en/to-rent/property/thessaloniki-center

https://en.tospitimou.gr/property/to-rent/houses/Thessaloniki-Municipality/area-ids_[108],category_residential

http://www.oikies.net/en-US/forrent/residences/results.html

https://www.olympusrealestate.gr/