Operating costs (Betriebskosten): what your landlord may charge

Last updated: 24 October 2026

On top of the base rent you pay operating costs (Betriebskosten) every month. What the landlord may include depends on whether the Tenancy Act (MRG) applies fully to your flat. That is mainly the case in older and subsidised buildings.

What is included

Where the MRG applies fully, the landlord may pass on only the costs listed in its section 21:

water, sewer cleaning and meter reading
chimney sweep, waste collection and pest control
lighting in stairwells, corridors and the courtyard
insurance against fire, liability and water damage, other insurance only if most tenants agree
management and caretaking within legal limits
ongoing public charges such as property tax

Repairs to the building are not on the list, and neither is the reserve fund that owners build up. Neither may be charged to you as operating costs.

If the MRG applies only partly, for example in an unsubsidised new building or a rented-out condominium flat, the list does not apply. Your contract then defines which costs you bear, so read it carefully.

One exception: subsidised cooperative flats that were transferred into private ownership. For 15 years from the first purchase contract the MRG applies fully to them, and so does the list above.

Monthly payments and the annual statement

You usually pay a fixed monthly amount based on the previous year's costs. If costs have risen, it may be up to 10% higher. The landlord must settle the previous year's costs by 30 June. The statement is displayed in the building and you may inspect the receipts. Copies are at your own expense.

A credit is refunded with the rent payment after next, and a back payment is due on the same date. If the statement arrives in July, this affects the September payment.

These deadlines come from the MRG and apply where it applies fully. Otherwise they are usually set in the contract.

Heating and hot water

Heating and hot water are often billed as a separate item. Before moving in, ask how high the monthly advance is and how it is settled.

Non-profit housing

Flats from non-profit housing associations usually add a maintenance and improvement contribution (Erhaltungs- und Verbesserungsbeitrag). It is not an operating cost and follows its own rules under the WGG. Many flats in Wels are affected, so go through the monthly bill line by line.

Before you move in