BUWOG FAQs

If there is a change in your bank details, please notify us in writing or use our customer portal to change them manually.

As a tenant, you have the right to attach or install fixtures and fittings as you wish for residential use, as long as they do not interfere with the building fabric or impair the building’s external appearance. The installation of wall cupboards and decorative foils on doors are among the modifications permitted. 

Modifications or installations that interfere with the building fabric and/or change the external appearance require the approval of your lessor, whereby there is generally no entitlement to approval (see rental agreement). 
Unless otherwise agreed with the lessor, the rental apartment must be restored to its original condition at the tenant’s own expense upon moving out.

The lessor is not obliged to accept the installations or modifications, even if the installation/modification was approved for the duration of the contractual relationship. 
Further information and requests for approval can be found under Downloads & Forms on our website.

To be able to take action, we need your request in writing. In order to fulfil our obligation to provide evidence in the event of any legal action, we also require a statement and a log with details of the type, duration and time of the disruption.

Anonymous complaints cannot be processed.

Operating costs are ongoing, regular costs that are incurred when using the residential complex. Unless otherwise agreed, operating costs are apportioned to the tenants in accordance with a distribution key (on the basis of floor area). 

BUWOG issues the invoice within the statutory settlement period. Overpayments or differences are mutually settled according to the amount. 

Generally recognised operating costs (excluding heating and hot water) are listed below. 
Separate ancillary costs may also result from the respective agreements in effect (e.g. rental agreement, condominium agreement, etc.) and statutory provisions.
Water supply and disposal 

• Sewage
• Street cleaning/waste collection 
• Chimney sweep
• Operation of the lift 
• Exterior and stairwell lighting 
• Garden maintenance 
• Property taxes
• House cleaning 
• Caretaker
• Insurances
• Laundry facilities
• Snow removal, etc. 

The person entitled (credit balance) or liable to pay (additional payment) is the person who is the tenant of the apartment in question at the time the bill for operating costs is due. Unfortunately, no other regulation is permitted by law for rental apartments. See Section 21 (3) of the Austrian Tenancy Act (Mietrechtsgesetz, MRG).

Credit balances are shown with a MINUS SIGN, payments for arrears without a plus sign. It is also clear from the text below whether it is a payment for arrears or a credit balance.

BUWOG obtains information about your previous payment behaviour by means of a credit check. Before renting an apartment from us, we will check your creditworthiness with your consent. Of course, all information is subject to data protection and will not be passed on to third parties.

In accordance with the Austrian Condominium Act (Wohnungseigentumsgesetz, WEG), owners’ assemblies are held every two years, unless otherwise agreed or decided by a majority of two thirds of the shares.

No, the direct debit authorisation will not be used upon termination of the tenancy and/or management relationship. Any subsequent claims must therefore be transferred manually to the bank account known to you.

If the apartment has been returned in accordance with the agreement, we will check whether your financial contribution can be paid out. If there are no outstanding rent payments or arrears from the statements for ancillary costs, your financing contribution will be transferred to your bank account within the statutory period of a maximum of 8 weeks.

Heating costs consist of the operation of central heating and hot water supply systems as well as the commercial supply of heat. The heating costs incurred are often passed on to the tenants by the lessors, but in many cases, they are charged directly by the individual billing services for heating costs. In the annual statement, the total costs calculated in accordance with the Austrian Heating Cost Accounting Act (Heizkostenabrechnungsgesetz, HeizKG) are compared with the advance payments made. Here, too, differences or overpayments are settled between lessor and tenant.

Zu den Heizkosten zählen unter anderem: 

• Electricity costs 
• Maintenance costs
• Fuel costs
• Costs for emission control measurements
• Costs for operating meters
• District heating costs (base price, commodity price and metering price)

• When billing in accordance with the Austrian Heating Cost Accounting Act (Heizkostenabrechnungsgesetz, HeizKG), as is predominantly the case, heating costs are consumption-based costs and are therefore charged to the person responsible. Therefore, the person who lived in the apartment during the specified period pays the bill. 
• In the case of billing exclusive of the Austrian Heating Cost Accounting Act (Heizkostenabrechnungsgesetz, HeizKG), heating costs are operating costs and are offset against the statement of operating costs (rather rare). In this case, the costs are borne by the contractual partner at the time the bill is due.

If the apartment has been returned in accordance with the agreement, we will check whether your security deposit can be paid out. If there are no outstanding rent payments or arrears from the statement for ancillary costs, your security deposit will be transferred to your bank account.

The information on our website is already helpful for numerous issues. 
Among other things, you have access to details of available properties anytime and anywhere and can obtain information concerning our company and services and clarify a large number of housing-related questions – without having to wait.

Are you already familiar with the services covered by the BUWOG app? 
The My BUWOG customer app offers you information and functions relating to your contractual relationship – 24 hours per day. 

You can find the contact details of your responsible support team in the information notice in your complex.

Are you looking to terminate your tenancy? We regret that you will no longer be one of our customers.  
Please send us a notice of termination signed by all contractual partners. If a signature is missing, we will unfortunately not be able to accept the termination. 
You can find a corresponding template on our website under Service & Contact -> Tenants | “Terminate Tenancy” form.

We certainly appreciate that a construction project in the immediate vicinity of your own home can entail limitations. The resulting emissions can have an impact on the overall quality of life experienced. We regret the inconvenience to you.
You are welcome to contact your management team directly. They will contact the owner of the neighbouring property and ask them to show consideration for the neighbouring parties.
In order to minimise your inconvenience, we kindly suggest that you contact the construction company on a regular basis to enquire about any “special” inconveniences (e.g. noise level, duration). If these are brought to our attention, we can make this information available to you via a notice board, for example. This will give you the opportunity to consider the upcoming disruptions from an organisational perspective. In this respect, we are of course dependent on the willingness of the construction company to cooperate and the quality of the information provided by the construction company.

In this case, please check your account. It is possible that it was not covered at the time of the direct debit.

Every year in January, the monthly flat-rate operating costs and, if applicable, heating costs are adjusted. Depending on current consumption and economic efficiency, this can be increased to a necessary level. 

Furthermore, based on your rental agreement, the primary rent may be indexed. If the agreed threshold value is reached, the primary rent must be adjusted.

Yes. After all of the documents are signed by the parties to the agreement, you receive a copy of the agreement.

Please complete our “Key confirmation” form and send it to us, as confirmation from property management is always required in the case of a secure locking system. You can find the form at buwog.at | Service & Contact | Tenants
The costs for this are to be borne by you.

Superficial defects that do not impair functionality are “blemishes” (e.g. scratches or small cracks on the walls, door frames, doors, etc.). In principle, there is no entitlement to rectification by the lessor. However, please report such defects to us. Your property management team (contact details are displayed in your complex) will discuss your concerns with your lessor and inform you of the next steps.

We highly appreciate your suggestions. Please note that decisions regarding the condition of the property (new installation of appliances, retrofitting or new installations, etc.) are made exclusively by your lessor. As the property management company, we are pleased to pass these on to your lessor.

If you are interested in purchasing the apartment to be returned, please email us a written declaration of interest in purchasing the property to kundenmanagement@buwog.com. We will forward your enquiry to the responsible office, which will contact you directly.

The apartment owner must bear all of the expenses for the property, i.e. all costs incurred in the use and management of the property, on a pro rata basis. Such expenses may include:
• Operating and other management costs
• Expenses for communal systems, e.g. heating, lift, etc. 
• Management costs
• Costs of maintenance and improvement work
• Contributions to the reserves
• Annuities
 

The transfer of ownership takes place during the final inspection. Please confirm the date to our employee at the preliminary inspection. In an emergency, you can be represented by a person of trust (by means of written authorisation). Please inform us of this person’s contact information in advance so that we can get in touch with them. You are obliged to pay the rent until the actual end of the lease.

Please carry out the measures agreed for any necessary preliminary inspection by this date and provide our sales representative(s) with the pre-sorted and labelled keys.
For new tenants: Please note that preliminary transfer of the keys to a new tenant is not permitted. Also in your interest, one of our employees should be present on this date in order to properly record the transfer.

Otherwise, you will continue to be liable for any damages to the apartment, even if you are no longer in possession of it.

Tenants can arrange to pay in instalments with a downpayment of EUR 150,00 or more. The instalment must be completed by December of the respective year.
Please note the submission deadline: You can apply for payment by instalments up to the 10th of the current month – repayment begins the following month. The instalment agreement must always be made in writing. 

An example: You receive your statement of operating costs on 30 April 20xx (note: submission by 30 June 20xx at the latest in accordance with legal requirements). You can agree to pay in instalments starting in June 20xx by 10 May 20xx. The maximum number of instalments is then 7 until the December statement is issued.