|
Are you looking for an accommodation in Budapest? Are you
concerned with language barriers in Hungary? Do you have any
bad experience with landlords and property managers in
Budapest? If you need a home to live in Budapest where
apartment matters are in good hand, this is the way you go.
Home search in Budapest
You will
first and find out advertising websites and
letting agencies in Budapest which are in the search results.
To find apartments for rent in a particular street or
complex you will type special key words in
such as
‘rent apartments on Andrassy’ or ‘rent apartments in Gozsdu
Udvar’. It is a time consuming exercise and you need to be
patience and creative to find what you want in a reasonable
time frame.
Popular community sites –
and
- just like
reliable contacts through your friends can speed things up.
Do not try to save time on accommodation search in Budapest and
Think Twice because you get burned easily with fast actions.
Let’s have a look at cool tips of how to protect yourself
from unpleasant situations with agents & agencies, and home
owners in Hungary.
Relevant information about rental terms and conditions you
might not know about
Rent
-
payable on monthly basis in Hungary (best practise)
-
HUF is the widely accepted currency but EUR can be an
alternative option
-
rent does not include utilities unless it is clarified
-
invoice/receipt is to required before you arrange any
payment
When you arrange any financial issue please collect a
paperwork (soft copy by email or hard copy by hand
or post) for security reason. You need to prove how much and
when you paid if you had any argument in the future:
-
if you pay in cash: pay directly to a bank account and you
will get cash deposit slipt from the bank
-
if you pay by bank transfer: you will have bank statements
from the bank
Please keep all paperwork until you rent an accommodation in
Budapest.
Good and reasonable rent for an accommodation in Budapest is
not set by districts/areas so obviously in contrast to other capital
cities in Europe. You can find both cheap and expensive
apartments in the same district in the same street and in
the same building. There are no expensive or cheap districts
in Budapest. Also, number of bedrooms has a real pricing
effect in rent while size of apartment is not as important
as you would think in advance. Rent prices in Budapest are
effected most by:
- street (Andrassy) and street number (68 Andrassy Avenue)
-
building/complex(ordinary or renovated classical building;
new complex)
- apartment condition(renovated/new built,
furnished/unfurnished and standards)
-
number of bedrooms( the more number of bedroom the higher
expected rent)
-
view (street view, grey or green court yard view, level of
sunshine)
-
level of floor (the higher floor the higher rent even in new
or renovated buildings with lift)
-
size, layout/floor plan (the reasonable size with good layout
preferable rather than size itself)
-
other factors/features like noise and air pollution, balcony, alarm,
air-conditioning, leisure facilities
-
special like short or long term (the shorter term
the higher rent)
When you are expecting to work or study in Budapest but you
do not know the city, it is strongly recommended to do
a homework about areas/streets/complex you prefer. If you
have any chance to visit Budapest, please do not hesitate to
do that. Central located districts have both nice and ugly
streets and central located streets have both lovely and
horror buildings.
The very first tenants in Budapest who arrive from abroad
and know just a little about Budapest they are most likely
to make bad decisions in terms of location and rent.
Lease Agreement & (Refundable) Security Deposit
12 months’ lease without break clause and security deposit
of 2 months’ rent in general offered to
Tenants in Budapest:
-
starting/finishing date must be clarified
-
date of moving-in is usually the starting date
-
payments and deadlines (rent, security deposit, utilities)
must be clarified
-
lease agreement, however, can be finalised 1-2 months in
advance before lease starts
-
the first month’s rent and security deposit must be arranged
before tenant moves in
-
security deposit is refundable only when tenant moves out
without shortfall in rent and utilities at date of
expiration
-
security deposit is non-refundable when tenant breaks the
agreement and moves out earlier than it is agreed before
Utilities, Meter Readings & Inventory
When you set your budget for an accommodation in Budapest,
rent + utilities would give you a real picture of financial
requirements you need to satisfy. Utilities can be
as wide range as 15%-50% of rent you pay for the apartment.
For instance, HUF100,000 rent + HUF30,000 utility would be a
realistic figure when you set your budget. Winter/Heating
time is to be taken into consideration from October to May.
What should you know about utilities in Budapest?
Condominium/Community/Common charge
Directly related charge for
building/complex maintenance and operation (lift, cleaning
in complex, common electricity, water and gas usage,
building management). Every single
building/complex has a different pricing system but
condominium charge is based on sq. m (size of apartment)
Rent + Condominium charge is fixed while water,
gas/heating/air-conditioning, electricity are usually based
on meter readings. Utility is a crucial issue in Budapest
apartment rental because each building have a different
billing system. Let us have a look at them in general:
Heating and hot water supply
In-House system: Both heating and hot water meter available
and billing on meter readings. However, there are classic
buildings where heating and hot water service just like
condominium charge is fixed.
-
there are classic buildings where heating and hot water
charges are fixed in 12 months a year
- there are new buildings where heating charges have a minimum
level in Winter time because in-house system operation has a
fixed charge that is to be paid
Individual system: When heating and hot water provided by
gas/electric boiler and billing on gas/electricity meter and
cold water readings
-
you can regulate heating/hot water supply by yourself
-
electric heater/electric boiler provides service at higher
utility bill
 Cold water
In Hungary, you need to pay for cold water in 2 ways.
Included in condominium charge usually in Old/Classical
buildings or
Water meter available and billing based on meter readings.
Electricity
All apartment has an electricity meter and billing based on
meter readings. Electricity company is very proactive that
means to you that shortfall in bills can lead to cut off in
electricity service in 3 months.
Air-Conditioning
 In-House system: In new complexes you can find in-house
air-conditioning system with separate meter. Service
available for residents when in-house system is working from
May/June to August. It is a common problem when in-house
air-conditioning systems do not work well in Budapest.
Split Air-Conditioning: Accommodation has an exclusive split
air-conditioning system with indoor and outdoor unit(s). You
can use it whenever you wish. What’s more, professional
system can provide heating service in cold summer nights.
Please mind split air-conditioning system use electricity,
that is why, electricity bill can be affected by split A/C.
When you handover apartment and keys from landlord or
property manager you need to have a
paperwork including
up-to-dated meter readings and inventory list:
-
meter readings from the date you move in
-
inventory list at the date you move in (defects/marks/snags
with request for maintenance)
-
sets of keys, alarm and building codes need to be defined
-
user’s manual(s) for electrical appliances provided
Meter readings and inventory list are also inspected when tenant
moves out and landlord/property manager refunds security
deposit.
Internet, cable tv and fixed-line telephone
Internet
as well as cable tv and fixed line telephone services are
available in all districts of Budapest. Find out exclusive
service provider in the building you are interested in
because more than one service providers might be represented
in a district (but only one provides service in the
particular building/complex).
We wish you a pleasant stay in Budapest!
|
