Rent an apartment through an agency for daily rent: features of the deal, pros and cons

Legislation

The issue of renting out housing is regulated by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Chapter 35 is devoted to this topic, which defines the relationship between the landlord and the tenant. On its basis, employment contracts are drawn up, controversial issues or situations are considered in court.

If you plan to rent out an apartment to a foreign citizen, then you should also take into account Federal Law No. 115 “On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation” and Federal Law No. 109 “On Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation.”

Who can take it

According to Art. 30 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the owner of a residential premises has the right to provide the property belonging to him for use on the basis of a lease agreement.

The subtenant also has the right to rent out housing on the basis of a social tenancy agreement and written permission from the owner of the property (Article 67 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation). In this case, a notarized power of attorney must be issued.

Can a non-owner

Not only the owner, but also any authorized individual or legal entity under a power of attorney can engage in rental housing.

If housing is jointly owned, then family relationships, even the closest ones, are not a legal basis for sole disposal of real estate. In this case, you will need a power of attorney from all co-owners of the apartment or their presence when signing the agreement.

Who can rent an apartment to?

From the legal side, all participants in civil legal relations can be parties to the lease agreement. We are talking about individuals and legal entities, including the state represented by authorized bodies.

I have identified for myself several categories of tenants to whom it is possible to rent out an apartment profitably, taking into account certain features:

Married couple with a small child. Most of these clients are decent people, and for fear of being left homeless, they always try to pay their rent on time. As a rule, the spouse spends a lot of time at work, and the young mother devotes time to the child, cleaning and cooking. The negative side of such tenants is, oddly enough, the child. Small children are very active; if you let them out of your attention for a few minutes, you may find painted walls or broken furniture. You can withhold compensation for damage from the security deposit, but it may not always be enough.
Tenants from neighboring countries (2–4 people). This category of tenants is reluctant to contact, but they are willing to pay more than the standard price. You can only rent out housing to them in full, since by providing only one room for rent, you risk making the rest of the living space unclaimed by the “indigenous residents” looking for free squares for rent.
Tenants from neighboring countries (more than 4 people). An ordinary apartment without much renovation is suitable for rent in this category, but disagreements with neighbors may arise. The positive side of such cooperation is the potential income, which is 40–50% more, as well as the absence of the need to create ideal conditions.
Lonely guys. Oddly enough, young people often contacted me, complaining that renting housing was problematic, and the options considered involved living with the owners or in walk-through rooms.

When choosing a tenant, you need to set priorities for yourself - maximum income from the apartment or a guarantee of the safety of the property and calm cooperation.

Delivery methods

There are two ways to organize a business: independently or through a real estate agency.

On one's own

If you have a sufficient amount of time and knowledge or do not trust the agents, then you can deal with the rental personally.

To submit yourself you need:

Prepare housing for rent. Decide whether it will be a long-term rental or daily rental. The degree to which the apartment is equipped with household appliances, furniture, textiles (bedding, towels, bathrobes, etc.) depends on this. The main requirements are the presence of cosmetic repairs, working electrical, plumbing, heating systems, as well as ideal order in the room.
Collect information on prices of housing with similar characteristics. These could be Internet sites for real estate rentals, social networks, newspapers, various bulletin boards and others.
Assess the condition of the object (location, transport interchange, educational institutions, etc.), identify all the pros and cons. Set a price, preferably the average price for the supply market. Nobody wants to cut prices, and it’s more difficult to resist the temptation to get more money, so you need to try to choose a middle ground.
Take high-quality photographs as close as possible to the real condition of the property - this will save you from unnecessary calls and views.
Write the text of the ad indicating the size of the living space, number of floors, number of rooms, name of the location. Give a detailed description of the positive aspects of the apartment, whether there is a store or kindergarten nearby, indicate the amount of rent, deposit and the owner’s phone number.
Place an ad on popular sites: “Avito”, “Domofond”, “Cyan”, “World of Apartments”. On message boards of local websites and media, tell friends and acquaintances about renting out housing.
Take calls, be ready to answer questions, arrange viewings, arrange showings.
Prepare a sample lease agreement, competently drawn up by a lawyer, which will spell out all the obligations of the parties, force majeure circumstances and liability for failure to comply with the terms of the agreement.
Try to choose the most decent and trustworthy among the countless potential applicants. There is no need to be shy about asking questions about the solvency and type of activity of a potential tenant. Be sure to check his passport details and registration. Enter this information into the contract and make a copy of the employer’s passport.

Through an intermediary

When contacting a real estate agency, a contract for the provision of services is concluded, and no fee is charged to the owner. From this moment on, the intermediary takes on all responsibilities: advertising, searching for clients, legal issues. The owner can only arrange a meeting with future residents by phone. With the mutual consent of the landlord and tenant, an agreement is concluded in the presence of a realtor.

Housing can be rented either daily or for a period of any length. The success of long-term rentals depends on correctly selected tenants, their decency and solvency. Renting an apartment daily has its pros and cons.

The undoubted advantages include the following:

Monthly income increases by 3-4 times compared to long-term rental, even if the occupancy rate is 15 days per month.
If the apartment is for sale, then daily rent is also very convenient. No one commits themselves to long-term obligations, and at the same time, housing is always available for viewing.
The owner has the opportunity to stop renting at any time and use the apartment at his own discretion.

Step-by-step instructions for renting an apartment through an agency

The first step is to find a reliable and trusted real estate agency. Information about organizations - on the Internet or from friends who have experience working with realtors.

Having decided on a company, you need to personally visit the agency’s office and familiarize yourself with the terms of the contract.

Requirements for an agreement with an agency

The contract with the agency is concluded in writing, which must include:

Date and place of imprisonment.
Name of the parties.
The subject of the agreement is services for finding real estate tenants with details of what kind of housing will be rented.
Rights and obligations of the parties.
Contract time.
Price or price list for agency services - if payment is provided for in the agreement.
Responsibility of the parties.
Signature and details of the parties to the agreement.

you can here.

Preparing the apartment

I skip the moment with basic cosmetic repairs, since it goes without saying that the apartment should have it. It doesn’t hurt to order the services of a cleaning company, but if you have the desire and skills, you can handle the cleaning yourself.

Be sure to pay attention and correct if necessary:

plumbing;
electrical wiring;
household appliances and furniture;
locks on doors and windows;
heating system.

There should be no personal belongings in the apartment; I recommend sticking to minimalism.

Conclusion of an agreement between the owner and the tenant

A real estate agency is an intermediary between the parties to an apartment rental agreement.
This means that the basic agreement is between the landlord and the tenant.
The stage of concluding a deal is the most important, since it is at this moment that the parties agree on essential terms and sign their agreement to them.

The rental agreement can be found here.

Contract form

The agreement is concluded in simple written form. There is no need to notarize the document. I recommend limiting the agreement period to 1 year, and after the specified period, simply renew it.

If one of the parties is a legal entity, then state registration will be required.

What information is included in the contract?

The lease agreement must include:

Full name of the parties to the agreement indicating passport details.
Data from title documents for the apartment.
Contract time.
Rent amount.
Payment procedure and billing period.
Conditions for changing the rental price.
Procedure for payment of utilities.
The number of people who will live in the apartment.
Inventory of property provided for temporary use.
Defects, if any.
Signature and details of the parties.

The law does not prohibit supplementing the agreement based on the agreements reached.

Required documents

The tenant only needs to prepare a passport, but with the landlord it is somewhat more complicated.

If housing is rented out by a citizen, then he needs to prepare:

Passport.
Title documents for the property being rented out.
A certificate of no debt or a payment book confirming payment of current meter readings.
Cadastral passport.
Written, notarized consent of all property owners, no matter how many there are.
A lease agreement indicating a clause granting the right to sublease the property - if the apartment is not rented by the owner.

The lease agreement must also contain annexes - a transfer and acceptance certificate and an inventory of the property.

Registration of the agreement

A lease agreement concluded between individuals in simple written form for a period of up to 1 year is not subject to state registration.

State duty

The state fee for registering a lease agreement between individuals concluded for a period of more than 1 year is 2,000 rubles.

Early termination of the contract

If the contract has not expired, and one of the parties wants to terminate it, then this is possible:

by mutual agreement of the parties;
through the court at the initiative of the tenant or landlord;
on the grounds specified in the contract.

I also recommend studying Art. 620 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which contains a list of grounds for early termination of a lease agreement at the initiative of the tenant.
Article 450 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation also provides for the grounds for amendment and termination of the contract.

Victor Petrovich

6 years of experience as a lawyer and almost 4 years in the real estate business

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Step-by-step algorithm of actions

In order to rent out an apartment, you need to go through several stages.

Housing preparation

Preparing the apartment for rent will depend solely on what goals are being pursued: to whom to rent, long-term or daily, and of course, the cost of rent.

In any case, the premises must be suitable for

good floor, life and have appropriate condition: plumbing,

redecorating,

modern furniture,

necessary equipment.

This is the minimum for successful housing delivery.

The apartment should contain the most necessary items:

kitchen set,
plate,
fridge,
microwave,
TV,
vacuum cleaner,
washing machine,
wardrobe,
bed or sofa,
pots, frying pans, dishes,
kettle and iron,
textiles: curtains, linen and towels (for daily rental).

The rent will depend on the completeness of the apartment and the quality of repairs. If you use used equipment and furniture, you can rent out the apartment cheaper. There will always be clients for this option.

Search for an agency

You should take your search for a real estate agency very seriously. To do this, you need to collect information from friends and acquaintances, read reviews on the Internet, how AN has proven itself in the real estate market, how long it has been working. The success of the enterprise will depend on the choice made.

Documentation of the transaction

Regardless of whether it is an independent search for clients or an application for services from a real estate agency, it is necessary to collect a standard package of documents.

The following papers will be required:

Certificate or extract from the Unified State Register of Property Rights. It is good if there is one owner, otherwise the co-owner will need to be invited to the final stage of the transaction - the moment of concluding the contract.
Owner's passport. A copy of the document is also needed, since it is transferred along with the contract to the employer.
Written consent to rent from citizens registered in the apartment.
Receipts confirming the absence of debts for housing and communal services.

It is strongly recommended to always conclude a contract - both for long-term rentals and daily rentals. A properly drawn up document is a guarantor of peace of mind and protection of the interests of the landlord. In cases of conflicts, disputes or late payment, the contract can always be terminated early.

Required items:

Passport details of both parties.
Amount and terms of payment.
Who will live in the apartment (list).
Responsibilities of the owner and tenant. Additional requirements are discussed individually and are also specified in the contract.
The property located in the apartment, responsibility for its safety, the condition of the living space at the time of occupancy.
Force majeure situations.
Possibility of early termination of the contract in case of non-compliance with the living conditions.

An agreement is evidence of civil law relations between the parties entering into it.

In case of disputes, the owner has the right:

evict tenants within 3–7 days without refund of rent,
in case of damage to property - do not return the deposit amount,
in accordance with the relevant clause of the contract, to recover funds for the damage caused,
in more complex situations - go to court.

From this we can conclude that it is necessary to conclude an agreement, even if the tenants are good acquaintances or friends. This is necessary primarily for the property owner.

Scheme of work of a real estate company

Realtors are intermediaries in civil legal relations related to real estate. Moreover, they are not limited to one rental.

Here are a few functions that real estate agencies perform:

selection of real estate based on the tenant’s requirements;
holding meetings with clients and showing housing;
assistance in negotiations between the parties under the lease agreement;
transaction support;
preparation of documentation, as well as checking legal purity;
providing assistance at the stage of calculations.

The client can order a comprehensive service from the agency or limit himself to one of the listed ones.

The work scheme of a real estate agency in the rental sector is as follows:

The landlord contacts the company for help.
An agreement is signed with the client.
We work with rental properties - submitting advertisements, negotiating with potential clients, organizing meetings and showing apartments.
An agreement is drawn up and the transaction is supported.
The result is a commission.

Comprehensive service means supporting the landlord from the moment he contacts the agency until signing the lease agreement.

How to avoid falling for scammers

Fraudsters operate in many areas of civil legal relations, and the rental sector is no exception.

To the Lessor:

Do not make any payments to the realtor.
Do not submit title documents to the agency.
Check the charter or other documents indicating the legality of the agency’s activities.
Before contacting a company, read reviews about the organization.
Build relations with the agency only on the basis of a written agreement.

To the tenant:

Pay for agency services only after signing the lease agreement.
Familiarize yourself with the title documents for rental housing.
Carefully study the contract, especially the section of the realtor’s responsibilities.
Always sign an act of acceptance and transfer of housing with an inventory of items, furniture and household appliances in the apartment.
Do not make advance payments.

By following the above recommendations, you will protect yourself from unscrupulous realtors and outright scammers.

Legal consequences

You should know that any sources of income must be included in the declaration or registered as an occupation. The formation of the state taxation system depends on this.

The law guards order, and if a citizen decides to “go into the shadows,” then he should think again and weigh the pros and cons, find out what the consequences of tax evasion may be.

Procedure:

Registration of a patent. You will need to spend money to purchase it. The price will depend on the validity period - from 1 to 12 months within one calendar year. If you buy a patent within six months, you will need to pay for it immediately; in other cases, you are allowed to transfer funds in installments. The cost is determined individually: the tax base, which depends on the location and living space of the apartment, is multiplied by 6%.
Register as an individual entrepreneur (IP). There is a simplified taxation system here, which is an obvious advantage. For individual entrepreneurs, the rate is set at 6% of the amount of income for the year + insurance premiums.
Paying tax as an individual without the need to register as an individual entrepreneur. The tax is set at 13% of the annual income. A declaration in Form 3 of personal income tax is filled out and submitted to the tax office by April 30 of the current year.

Which is more profitable?

At first glance, it may seem that renting out real estate is a profitable business. The cost of apartments in big cities is high, but the rent is low, so the investment is justified only after decades. It will be possible to make a profit only if the owner manages to find reliable clients and avoid possible risks.

Positive aspects of working with an intermediary

Using the services of an agency means trusting professionals in their field.

Pros of using a realtor:

saves time, the method is suitable for those for whom renting out housing is not their main activity,
searching for candidates according to predetermined criteria,
taking calls, negotiating, showing living space is also the agent’s concern,
there is no need to pay for services, this responsibility rests with the potential tenant,
execution of contracts, legal support of transactions.

Risks for the owner

When renting out an apartment, you need to be mentally prepared for some risks associated with frequent changes of tenants, property damage and theft.

As a rule, agents are not interested in a long search for clients (they have dozens of them), so you shouldn’t relax too much and be “on the alert.” You need to carefully consider the choice of residents among the many offered. You should not be shy to ask questions, because future problems will have to be resolved only by the owner, since the agency, after signing the contract and receiving its commission, is no longer responsible for anything.

Damage to property

Often careless residents do not even think about the safety of furniture, household appliances or apartment decoration. You will need to include a clause in the contract regarding tenant liability and compensation for damages. Taking out insurance for decoration, household appliances and other property will help protect against such risks.

Sublease

Anyone can come across scammers who can rent out an apartment to someone else, more than once. Therefore, in order to minimize the risk of getting into an unpleasant situation, it is necessary to make frequent visits to the apartment in order to personally verify who lives in it. Similar tactics can also be used to control the number of people.

Illegal actions of tenants

Tenants can set fire to the living space, flood, or simply turn out to be scammers. In such cases, good relations with neighbors will be very useful, as they will be able to warn about something suspicious and, perhaps, it will be possible to prevent the crime in time.

But you shouldn't count on luck. In such cases, you must contact the police. Therefore, you must have a well-drafted agreement with a detailed list of all property and the condition of the apartment at the time of check-in, as well as the passport details of the guests. This will help prove the fact of damage or theft.

Debt for housing and communal services

The easiest way to avoid utility debts is to make utility payments in person. It is worth paying for it yourself, even if the apartment is rented for a long time. This is the only way to be sure that there will be no late payments.

Cheap and cute

The discount on unfurnished apartments can reach 15 percent in economy class and no more than 10 percent in business class, according to INCOM. This discount rate was established before the crisis and is not growing even in conditions of high competition among landlords.

“This is because there is a demand for unfurnished apartments - approximately 15 percent of the total volume, and it has been stable over the past three years,” explains Polyakova. “For example, about six months ago, a tenant contacted our company, who was looking for a completely empty apartment in a new, but already lived-in building, on the floor no lower than the 10th and no higher than the 12th, and the view from the windows was of no importance. The living space should be freshly renovated, with new plumbing and heavy dark blue curtains on the windows, the main feature is that the apartment should not be cleared of furnishings, but simply never have known furniture. As the employer put it - with a clean, unsullied aura of furniture. No compromises were taken into account.

Surprisingly, just such an option was found quite quickly: the landlords - a husband and wife - three years ago purchased an apartment in a new building for their grown-up daughter and carried out high-quality renovations. But the daughter did not intend to live there yet, but decided to start a family in her future husband’s apartment, then she got married and together they went on a long business trip to Italy. They decided not to furnish the apartment, but to rent it out. Well, we bought heavy blue curtains especially for the tenant.”

Nuances

It should be understood that there are some differences in the approach to renting economy and business class housing. Currently, housing costing up to 20 thousand rubles is in great demand and it is much easier to rent it out in terms of timing and initial investment.

Premium class premises require expensive renovations, high-quality furniture and appliances. You will also need additional regular advertising. For the rental of luxury housing, agency fees are often charged to both the tenant and the homeowner. This is due to additional costs. Expensive apartments most often become attractive targets for criminals.

How much do the services cost?

In most cases, the payment of commissions falls on the tenant. Renting an apartment through a real estate agency costs a lot of money, so many people look for the owners, avoiding intermediaries. The owner of the home does not pay anything, as he gives the realtors the opportunity to earn money.

The exception is for owners of luxury real estate. There may be a different approach to the process of searching for tenants, especially if the owner sets a short deadline. Usually in such cases, an agreement is drawn up with the Academy of Sciences for the provision of services, where their fixed cost is clearly stated.

Costs are spent on additional advertising, more thorough screening of candidates and, of course, on connecting a closed database of personal data of clients, information about which only this agency has. Such information has been collected bit by bit over the years from various sources. This kind of information has its price. Payment of commissions occurs only after the transaction is concluded, whether by the owner or the tenant.

How to behave after renting an apartment

The landlord, who has successfully rented out an apartment through an agency or on his own, remains to reap the benefits of the deal. I recommend periodically checking the condition of the property in the first few months, with prior agreement with the tenant. If you are on good terms with your neighbors, then it would be a good idea to ask them about what is happening in your home. If violations of the agreements reached are detected, immediately initiate the process of terminating the lease agreement.

Recommendations for choosing a realtor

If you still decide to rent out an apartment through an agency, then you should take your search for a company seriously. The success of the entire enterprise will depend on this.

The following are considered guarantors of AN reliability:

drawing up an agreement with the owner for the provision of services,
fixed commission amount for a completed transaction,
payment is made only after the conclusion of an agreement between the parties (owner and tenant),
the presence of an official website and positive reviews about the agency’s work on the Internet.

How to spot scammers?

As Alexandra Brodelshchikova, general director of the law firm , there are several signs that are characteristic of swindler tenants.

— Fraudsters try not to show their documents and flatly refuse to provide copies of them.

“They also refuse to issue a written lease agreement.

— Scammers can give themselves away by the fact that they have little interest in the condition of the apartment, the infrastructure of the area, location, or neighbors. They try to make a deal “quickly”.

— Pseudo-tenants will not transport many things to someone else’s apartment that they plan to sell. They don't plan to live here long.

— As in the case of Muscovite Olga Konstantinova, attackers can offer payment for several months in advance. Firstly, such a proposal lulls the owner’s vigilance: “What decent guys, they are ready to pay a large amount at once.” Secondly, paying six months in advance will save them from regular visits from the home owner, which could ruin the showing of the apartment to potential buyers.

Removal problems. What are tenants, owners and their neighbors complaining about? More details

TOP 5 agencies

Today, there are a number of companies in the real estate market that have proven themselves to be conscientious performers.

List of the best of them:

"CIAN" - Central Real Estate Information Agency. It has a large database that provides any information about real estate almost throughout the country.
"INCOM-Real Estate" is the largest Russian real estate company, operating since 1991. It has its own “Analytical Center”, which assesses and forecasts the market situation.
"Best Real Estate". The Moscow real estate agency, represented on the market since 1992, consists of 16 branches. Carries out all types of real estate activities, including renovation, design and redevelopment.
Domostroy is a Russian holding company founded in 1994. Provides legal support for transactions (privatization, inheritance, etc.). Covers the entire range of services in the primary and secondary markets.
"Miel" is an investment and development holding since 1990. By type of activity, the company is divided into 4 branches: “Rent”, “Country Real Estate”, “Brokerage”, “Commercial Real Estate”.

By turning to “reliable” real estate companies for help, owners save time, nerves and money.

What to do if the apartment has already been sold?

Sincerely (or not so) erring buyers will have to be evicted through the courts. And the sooner you do this, the smaller the losses will be, warns Yulia Gryzenkova, Deputy Head of the Department of Housing Mortgage Lending and Insurance at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation .

The worst option, according to her, is when attackers managed to mislead Rosreestr using fake powers of attorney or hack the owner’s digital signature and carry out a transaction. “In this case, it will take a long time to prove the fraud in court and only then deal with eviction,” she points out.

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