Understand a Danish rental lease agreement

A lease is a necessity as it gives both parties a clear agreement and protects them in case of disagreements. If there is no lease, the standard rules of the Tenancy Act apply. This means that special conditions between tenant and landlord, such as fixed-term tenancies, rent regulation, maintenance obligations and rules for pets, do not apply.

Paragraph 1-11

Now that you know how important a lease is, we’re going to give a brief review of each of the clauses of the lease, from 1-11.

§ 1 - Tenants and the leased

In § 1, you must state which type of housing the lease includes, e.g. apartment, owner-occupied flat, cooperative housing or room. If you rent a holiday home, terraced house or semi-detached house, you must select “other”.

If you rent out a home that you rent yourself, you must complete a sublease contract. In this case, “the tenancy is a subtenancy” must be ticked under § 1.

You must also provide information about the tenant and landlord, including names and addresses. Landlord’s CVR no./Reg. No. must also be stated.

If the landlord has a property manager, information about both the landlord and the administration must be provided.

The right of use of the tenancy must also be stated, including shared laundry, bicycle parking, shared yard facilities, etc. Finally, it must be noted what the tenancy may be used for without the landlord’s written consent, such as “residential”, “business” or a combination.

§ 2 - Start and end of the tenancy

Section 2 deals with the start and end of the tenancy. It begins when the tenant gets the key to the tenancy and the landlord can start collecting rent. Termination of the tenancy must be stated. Unless otherwise agreed, the tenant can terminate the tenancy after the termination period, which is 3 months for an apartment and 1 month for a single room. The landlord can terminate the tenancy with a valid reason and with 12 months’ notice. If it is a fixed-term tenancy, it ends when the fixed-term period expires.

Payment of Rent in § 3

The annual rent, both with and without consumption, must be specified in this section. It also includes leases that are limited in time to less than one year. In addition, it must be stated which day of the month the rent must be paid. Landlords often prefer to collect rent monthly, but a quarterly payment can also be agreed.

In order to collect payment for expenses that are not included in the rent, the landlord must be authorized under the Tenancy Act. The landlord can charge heat, water, electricity, cooling, antenna and internet in addition to the rent, but the Tenancy Act prohibits the collection of PBS fees, renovation costs and stair washing in addition to the rent.

It is necessary to indicate the last tax and duty notification, as this way the tenant becomes aware of any future rent increases. Unless otherwise agreed, all property taxes must be included in the rent. In addition, it must be specified where the rent must be paid.

If the landlord wishes to regulate the rent according to the net price index, this must be stated in § 11

§ 4 – Deposit and Prepaid Rent

If the deposit and/or prepaid rent is collected by the landlord, this must be stated in § 4. The amount for the deposit and prepaid rent and the number of months paid must be stated. According to the Tenancy Act, a maximum of 3 months’ prepaid rent without consumption and 3 months’ deposit may be charged.

The deposit is the landlord’s security when the tenant moves out, so that there is money for repairs. Prepaid rent can be used to pay the tenant’s rent during the notice period. If the tenant continues to pay rent, the landlord must repay prepaid rent upon vacating.

Finally, it must be stated when the tenant must pay his first rent after payment of the move-in price to avoid confusion about prepaid rent and first month’s rent.

§ 5 – Heating, cooling, water and electricity:

Heat:

In this part of the contract, it must be stated whether the tenant or landlord is responsible for supplying the heat. As a starting point, it is the landlord who provides the heating. The landlord must prove the tenant’s heat consumption and heat cannot be charged as part of the fixed monthly rent.

The contract must also contain information about how the tenancy is heated, e.g. using district heating/natural gas, central heating with oil, electricity for heating or other. Under “other”, you can specify that the tenancy is heated with a heat pump, wood pellet stove or wood-burning stove.

Note that it must also be stated when the heating accounting year begins. Unless otherwise agreed, this is the period 1 June to 31 May, but many landlords choose to follow the calendar year. The accounting period can be changed by the landlord with 6 weeks’ notice, but must not exceed 18 months in the transition phase.

Electricity for heating:

In this part of the contract, it must be stated whether the tenant or the landlord is responsible for supplying electricity to the tenancy. If there are independent electricity meters, the tenant typically pays the electricity directly to the utility company. If it is a sublet single room without independent electricity meters, the electricity consumption will be included in the rent.

Water:

It must be stated in the contract whether the tenant or landlord is responsible for supplying water. If it is the landlord’s responsibility, there must be a consumption meter that can prove the tenant’s consumption, and it must be stated when the accounting year begins. If no individual water meters have been installed, the cost of water can only be charged through the rent.

Electricity for other than heating:

The starting point is that the tenant settles electricity for other than heating directly with the utility company. However, it can be agreed that it is the landlord who must supply electricity to the tenancy. It must also be stated when the electricity accounting year begins.

Cooling:

Under the cooling section, it must be stated whether it is the tenant or the landlord who supplies cooling to the tenancy. Cooling includes cooling systems that are integrated into the lease, which is the case for an air conditioning system, for example. Electric fans that are not integrated into the lease, on the other hand, are not covered by “cooling” in § 5. In addition, it must be stated whether the expense can be documented on individual consumption meters and when the cooling accounting year begins.

The Tenancy Act contains a number of rules on what a valid consumption account must fulfill in order for the landlord to be entitled to collect consumption from the tenant.

§ 6 – Common antennas etc. and access to electronic communication services

In clause 6, the tenant must be informed about whether the landlord makes common signal supply available, whereby the tenant must pay a contribution, or whether there is an antenna association in the property that makes common signal supply available.

§ 7 – Condition of the tenancy upon moving in

Move-in inspection and report:

In this section, it must be established whether a move-in inspection of the condition of the tenancy has been carried out. Landlords who let out more than one tenancy and are legally professional landlords are obliged to carry out a move-in inspection and provide a report to the tenant. The report should, among other things, document the condition of the floors, any damage to fixtures and whether the tenancy was freshly painted when moving in.

It is crucial to be aware that if the landlord does not comply with the rules regarding the move-in inspection and report, the landlord will not be able to deprive the tenant of the deposit upon moving out. In that case, the tenant has the right to have the entire deposit refunded, even if the landlord has incurred maintenance costs. Read more about the deposit and prepaid rent here.

The tenant must hand over the tenancy in the same condition as when moving in, apart from the deterioration due to normal wear and tear, which is not part of the maintenance obligation. Therefore, only errors and deficiencies that are not noted in the report can be required to be rectified upon eviction by the landlord.

Error and deficiency list:

Section 7 takes into account that the tenant can notify the landlord in writing within 14 days of the start of the tenancy about any errors and defects that were not discovered during the move-in inspection.

If the 14-day deadline is not observed, the lessor is not obliged to note the errors and deficiencies that the lessee draws attention to. If there are hidden defects that were present when the tenant moved in, but cannot be detected with the naked eye, the tenant can demand that the defect be noted and rectified, even if the 14-day period has expired. This may, for example, be the case if the tenant moves in in the summer, and therefore only discovers at a later stage that the radiator is broken.

§ 8 – Maintenance

Maintenance of the lease includes regular maintenance work as well as remedying errors and defects. The purpose is to maintain the condition of the lease in accordance with the agreement between tenant and landlord. Section 8 describes who is responsible for internal maintenance.

Internal maintenance:

Internal maintenance primarily includes painting of ceilings, walls and wooden floors, as well as wallpapering. The starting point of the law is that the landlord is responsible for maintenance, but it is often agreed that it is the tenant’s task.

If the landlord is still responsible, a maintenance account must be set up and the amount in the account must be specified in the contract.

Exterior maintenance:

External maintenance includes everything other than what is described as internal maintenance, such as white goods, electricity, gas, heating and lighting installations, windows and doors. This is dealt with under ”§ 11 – special conditions” and not under § 8 on maintenance.

Relocation:

In § 8, the landlord is encouraged to arrange an eviction inspection and draw up an eviction report if more than one residential apartment is let. We encourage you to call the tenant for an inspection in good time, so that the landlord can ensure that the repair claim against the tenant is not lost.

§ 9 – Inventory

The tenancy’s furniture is described in § 9. This includes items such as cooker, fridge, freezer, dishwasher and refrigerator. The inventory list has an influence on the size of the lessor’s maintenance obligation, as well as defines what must be present in the lease when the tenant moves out. The contents of the lease when the tenant moves in must also still be present when the tenant moves out.

It is possible that the lessor has mistakenly indicated that the lease contains fixtures that are not present. The tenant’s ability to demand that the missing fixture be installed depends on whether they discovered the error or had a presumption that it had occurred. If the tenant did not discover the defect, the tenancy is defective, and the tenant can either demand the installation of the missing equipment or a reduction of the rent.

§ 10 – Resident representation, livestock, house rules and other information

Resident representation:

This section describes the presence of resident representation in the property. The residents’ representation consists of representatives selected from among the property’s residents, and acts as the residents’ voice towards the landlord. Their tasks include e.g. the preparation of maintenance plans, the implementation of major renovation projects and the adoption of house rules.

Pets:

Section 10 states whether it is permitted to keep livestock in the tenancy. Domestic animals mainly include dogs and cats, but other animals of the same size and species may be considered equivalent. If the landlord gives permission for pets in the tenancy, it must be specifically stated in section 11 which animals are permitted, as well as their size and number.

If pets are not allowed, it is important to note that it is still possible to keep small animals such as fish, birds, rodents, reptiles and reptiles. If the landlord does not wish to allow small animals of any kind, this must be stated in section 11, and not in section 10. Section 11 must also specify whether the tenant is allowed to visit and look after livestock.

House rules:

Section 10 must state whether there are house rules at the start of the tenancy. If a house rule has been drawn up, it must be attached to the contract. The landlord has the option of attaching a standard house order that contains the elements that a house order should have. This concerns the tenant’s responsibility for guests, the use of common areas, noise, play, parties and handling of household waste.

Energy label:

The landlord is obliged to provide information on the energy label of the tenancy when the accommodation is rented out for more than four weeks.

§ 11 – Special conditions

§11 of the lease gives the lessor the opportunity to agree special terms with the tenant that deviate from §§1-10. Here are three examples of what should be included in a standard §11:

14-day repair period:

It can be agreed that the tenant must leave the tenancy no later than 14 days before the termination period expires. This gives the landlord the opportunity to renovate the tenancy and still receive full rent before a new tenant moves in. The landlord is therefore allowed 14 days’ rent, without the tenant having access to the tenancy.

Exterior Maintenance:

Another example is the responsibility for external maintenance, which can only be imposed on tenants in unregulated municipalities (with the exception of the garden). If the tenant has this duty, it must be stated in §11 and not in §8, which concerns the responsibility for interior maintenance. Why not include it as a standard in §11?

Rent regulation according to the net price index:

If the rent is regulated according to the net price index, the landlord can adjust the rent each year in line with the increases in the net price index from October of the previous year to October of the previous year.