My rent is 69% more than the last tenant's. Can they do that?
They can ask for it, but you can challenge it. Within 30 days of taking over the flat, you can contest the starting rent as abusive at the conciliation authority if the landlord raised it considerably compared with the previous rent, or if hardship or the local market forced you to sign. There are no court costs in tenancy disputes over housing.
Ep. 52 · Ding or Clonk? · 60 seconds. Watch
The real rule
Why the Swiss laugh, and what it means if you're new here.
Your starting rent, the Anfangsmietzins, is not simply whatever the landlord asks: if it jumped a lot compared with the last tenant's, the law lets you challenge it. In Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Lucerne, Zug and Zurich, and in parts of Neuchâtel and Vaud, the landlord must give you a form that shows the previous rent. As a newcomer, read that form when you move in: the 30 days start when you take over the flat.
Blüemli's verdict: Ding. Within 30 days. Challenge a big rise within 30 days. It is free.
ANFANGSMIETZINS: literally: “beginning rent interest”; really: your starting rent Ueli's Word
Be like Ueli. Read the form. You have 30 days.
Learn more: Arrival course, day 7: your rights as a tenant
The rule, explained
Article 270 of the Code of Obligations says a tenant can challenge the starting rent as abusive at the conciliation authority within 30 days of taking over the property. Two situations count: you had to sign because of personal hardship or the local housing market, or the landlord raised the starting rent considerably compared with the previous rent for the same property. Article 113 of the Civil Procedure Code adds that there are no court costs in tenancy disputes over housing. The Federal Housing Office lists, in its directory for 2026, where the form showing the previous rent is compulsory: Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Lucerne, Zug and Zurich, and parts of Neuchâtel and Vaud. The 69 percent in the film is a viewer's question, not a statistic.
Sources: Code of Obligations, Art. 270, on fedlex; Civil Procedure Code, Art. 113, on fedlex; Federal Housing Office, Verzeichnis für das Jahr 2026 (form for the starting rent)
Questions people ask
How long do I have to challenge my starting rent in Switzerland?
30 days after taking over the flat, at the conciliation authority (Art. 270 OR).
Which cantons require the form with the previous rent?
Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Lucerne, Zug and Zurich, and parts of Neuchâtel and Vaud (Federal Housing Office, 2026).
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