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Expenses at a glance Monthly Expenses RENT – Monthly ELECTRICITY– Monthly TELEPHONE –Monthly HEATING – Either monthly or as needed depending upon the type of heating system you are using. WATER – Various by city CABLE GARBAGE – Various by city Annual Insurance – paid by the owner Garbage tax – Various by city Chimney cleaning Initial expenses Residence registration: varies from town to town Rental Deposit: One ot two month’s rent Transformers 230V appliances Drapes/Sheets Light fixtures Timely Payment of Bills Bill payment is part of daily life and here in Germany it is no exception. Some of your main bills include: rent, electricity, gas, water, telephone and heating/oil. Rent Rent is paid in advance and due on the first day of each month. The landlord will remind the tenant. The landlord sends a registered letter seeking payment after several reminders and no payments. Next, the tenant’s supervisor/chain of command is notified of the debt. If payment is still not made, the landlord can take legal action to eject the renter from the premises. If the landlord takes the tenant to court, then the renter pays the court costs, a court fine and the rent due. Electricity The electric/gas bill is usually due l4 days from date of receipt. If no payment is received, a late fee is added to the bill. After frequent reminders, and depending on the amount owed, a disconnection notice is sent. The amount owed, the late fee, and disconnection notice must be paid in full before electricity is restored. The cost to reconnect electrical services varies from town to town. There is not payment plan for this debt. Read your meters every month. The monthly bill is an estimate of your electrical consumption. The annual bill is your true consumption. If you have paid more than you consumed, then you will receive a refund. If you have paid less, then you will be billed. Payment plans are possible for annual bills but not for monthly ones. The annual reading of the meter is not always at the end of year. Various towns, villages, have different months for their annual readings. The company representative (Stadtwerke) is available to answer questions Water The rental of water meter costs depending on the town. This bill is sent to the new occupant about two weeks after moving in and it should be paid within l4days of receipt. Water bills are not paid monthly. The Water Company reads meters once a year and like the Electric Company this is not always at the end of the year. This is an estimate of your consumption. An annual bill is sent out which reflects the true consumption. The Water Company sends out reminders (Zahlungserinnerung) when bills are not paid. This is added to your original bill. After several reminders and no payment, a last warning is sent. This is an alert that the water supply will be disconnected. If the debt is turned over to a collection agency or bailiff, the cost of this will also be added to the bill. Payment in full must be received before the water is turned on and this is very expensive. Read your water meter each month. If there is a significant increase in your readings and your habits have not changed, then there is a leak someplace. Check the radiators, faucets, toilets and pipes because water is leaking somewhere. Telephone The telephone bill is mailed once every month and must be paid within 14 days of receipt. If payment is not made within two months, a reminder is sent. After this time, incoming calls can be received but outgoing calls cannot be made. To restore the telephone service, a reconnection fee and the late fee must be paid. A new telephone number will not be issued. We all have to handle our financial affairs. We will inform you about European customs, how to set up an account, how to manage funds, and the latest news. |
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