Once the tenancy agreement is terminated, we are obliged to repay the deposit. The tenant would of course be pleased if he/she gets the deposit immediately after handing over the apartment. However, it is usually not possible to do so quickly, because we have the right (and also the obligation when we act on behalf of the owner) to check whether all claims on the part of the landlord from the tenant are actually fulfilled.

We are therefore only obliged to repay the rental deposit in full once all claims arising from the rental agreement have been met, that means

• when the rooms have been handed over properly and without defects and 
• when the service charges have been settled.

If it is clear that the tenant still owes something, we can call on the rental deposit for these claims. For this reason, we must check whether all costs have been paid before the rental deposit is repaid, for example for

• rent arrears
• unpaid service charges
• damages to the rented property
• neglected renovation work

We are entitled to a period of time for this examination, which can usually be between three and six months. If we assert justified claims for cosmetic repairs or damage, the tenant is entitled to an exact settlement. If we do not assert any justified claims and only an expected additional service charge payment is still outstanding, we are obliged to make a partial repayment of the rental deposit. We withhold an amount equal to the expected subsequent payment. The full or remaining rent deposit repayment is due as soon as we agree on the following points, dass

• the rental property was handed over without defects
• no further claims remain and
• service charges have been settled.

Depending on how the deposit was paid, the deposit will be refunded by returning the guarantee document and/or paying out the interest-bearing deposit amount. Nowadays, however, the interest rate is almost zero.