Warm rent vs cold rent: the number in the listing is never what you pay

You find an apartment for €1,200 a month. You do the math. It works. You apply.

Then you get the contract and the actual monthly amount is €1,490. Nobody lied to you. This is just how German rental pricing works, and it catches almost every expat at least once.

Cold rent is the base price

Kaltmiete — cold rent — is the number you see in listings. It’s what the landlord gets. It covers nothing else: not heating, not water, not the building’s shared electricity, not the caretaker who sweeps the courtyard on Thursdays.

Think of it as the price before anything real is added.

Nebenkosten is everything else

Nebenkosten means ancillary costs, and it is a catch-all for everything that keeps the building running. Depending on the building, this typically includes:

Heating (Heizung), the biggest variable, especially in old buildings with gas heating
Hot and cold water
Building insurance
Shared electricity (stairwell lights, basement, intercom)
Caretaker (Hausmeister) fees
Waste disposal
Sometimes: cable TV, building management fees, elevator maintenance

The landlord estimates these at the start of the year and charges you a monthly advance (Vorauszahlung). At the end of the year they do the actual accounting. If you used more than estimated, you pay the difference. If less, you get money back.

In practice, most people pay a bit extra at the end of the year. Heating estimates are optimistic and winters vary.

Warmmiete is what you actually pay

Warmmiete — warm rent — is Kaltmiete plus Nebenkosten. This is the real number. When you’re comparing apartments, this is the only number that matters.

A €1,100 Kaltmiete apartment with €400 Nebenkosten is more expensive than a €1,200 apartment with €200 Nebenkosten. The listing makes the first one look cheaper.

Some listings show Warmmiete, most show Kaltmiete. When only Kaltmiete is shown, the Nebenkosten are usually listed separately — sometimes as a precise figure, sometimes as an estimate marked ca. (circa). Treat any estimate as a floor, not a ceiling.

The deposit is calculated on cold rent

The Kaution — security deposit — is capped by law at three months of cold rent. So on a €1,200 Kaltmiete apartment, the maximum deposit is €3,600. You pay this upfront, before you move in, and you get it back at the end minus any deductions.

Worth knowing: the landlord is legally required to put your deposit in a separate account. It shouldn’t sit mixed with their own money.

What to actually ask before signing

Before you commit to an apartment, ask the landlord or agent:

What was the actual Nebenkosten settlement last year — not the estimate, the real number? If they won’t tell you, that’s information too.

What kind of heating does the building use? Gas heating in a poorly insulated Altbau can push Nebenkosten significantly higher in winter. District heating (Fernwärme) is usually more predictable.

Is anything not included in the Nebenkosten? Internet, for instance, is usually separate. So is electricity for your own apartment (Haushaltsstrom), which you contract directly with a provider.

The difference between Kaltmiete and what you actually transfer every month is usually 20-35%. Budget accordingly from the start and you won’t be surprised.

Comparing apartments and trying to track actual costs across multiple listings? Haus Together keeps everything in one place.