Landlords cannot simply demand higher rents due to inflation. This is the result of a landmark decision by the Regional Court of Munich I (AZ: 14 S 3692/24). In this case, the plaintiff demanded consent to a rent increase that exceeded the rent values of the 2023 rent index. She justified this with an unusual increase in local comparative rents since this date.
In such cases, courts can actually make a so-called key date supplement. In the present case, however, "an increase according to the index for net cold rents in Bavaria of only slightly more than 3 percent does not constitute an extraordinary rent increase", according to the Regional Court of Munich I. An unusual increase in the local comparative rent could also not be justified by an increase in the consumer price index. This represents the average price development of all goods and services of private individuals for consumption purposes.
The ruling is considered to be trend-setting. Numerous appeal proceedings are currently pending at Munich Regional Court I, in which the question of whether the reference to the consumer price index is sufficient to justify the so-called reference date surcharge must be investigated. According to the competent chamber, the introduction of a "reference date practice" could lead to considerable legal uncertainty, which could jeopardize the important pacifying function of the rent index, particularly in tight rental markets.
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