Federal government finally approves rental package: How to secure your home!

Federal government finally approves rental package: How to secure your home!

The Federal Government has approved a comprehensive rental package in the Council of Ministers that brings important innovations for tenants and landlords. According to vienna.at, a “Rental Value Assurance Act” will be introduced for the first time, which will intervene in unregulated rents. Vice Chancellor and Housing Minister Andreas Babler described the package as a “big hit” and emphasized that the rent control had been extended in the regulated area. In addition, the minimum term for rental agreements will be increased from three to five years.

The rent cap for unregulated rents is scheduled to come into force in January 2026. If inflation exceeds three percent, landlords are only allowed to pass on half of the excess inflation value to the rent. An example makes this clear: With inflation of 6%, the rent can increase by a maximum of 4.5%. This law applies to both new and existing rental agreements, with the exception of single and two-family homes.

Changes to rental agreements and price limits

The rent value adjustments may only take place once a year and on April 1st at the earliest. For the regulated rental area, the increase will also be limited to a maximum of 1% for 2026 and a maximum of 2% for 2027. From 2028, the same conditions as in the unregulated area will come into force in the regulated area. Non-profit, non-profit building associations are exempt from this.

The minimum term of rental agreements will be increased to five years from January 1, 2026, but private landlords with fewer than five apartments will not be included in this regulation. It was also decided that overpaid rents can only be reclaimed retroactively for five years instead of up to 30 years. This could significantly reduce the financial burden for many tenants.

Ecological renovations and renovation discussions

As part of the new rental package, the federal government also announced a discussion about reducing bureaucracy for house renovations in rural areas. A group of experts will develop proposals to fairly distribute the costs of thermal renovation and decarbonization. The regulatory mechanism to promote ecological renovations is scheduled to be presented in the first half of 2026.

These comprehensive measures should be seen in particular against the background of the sharp increase in rental prices of over 70% in Austria since 2010, while rental prices in the Eurozone have only increased by an average of 23.5%, as bmwkms.gv.at emphasizes. Many households spend a significant part of their income on housing costs, which also include operating costs and energy costs, as statistics.at shows.

The new rental package is intended to help improve the housing situation in Austria and make rents more affordable for the population by introducing important regulations and measures to combat the increasing burden of housing costs.