" Hello all, Allan''s post of Dec 14 (Finding An Appartment) brings up a very good question... Aside from cleaning, what exactly are the requirements when moving out of a Swiss appartment? Is ""normal wear and tear"" taken into account? Does the length of time that I have lived in the flat affect what I will be required to replace? Do I have to have the walls painted? Floors waxed? Will I have to replace the parquet floors if there are scratch marks? How about the garden... should I have a professional clean up there as well? Also, does renter''s insurance generally cover move out costs? I''ve seen cleaning services offering handover guarentees... Has anyone had any experience with these firms? Any idea of the average costs? Do I have any recourse if I disagree with the landlord''s assessment of damages or costs? I''d be grateful for any info or comments on your experiences. Thanks, E Dawson "

Post a Reply

00abuse

Choosing an expat health insurance provider is an important decision. Get a quote from our trusted expat health insurance partner, CIGNA. With Cigna Global Health Options, you can create an international health insurance plan that's perfectly tailored for the needs of you and your family.

Learn More Get a Quote

" Hi Am I going to have fun with this one..... I have already moved once. The experience is an interesting high stress time in my life so I will describe the experience. Each Swiss person is unique in what they check on your departure. Each like us has their various foibles and inconsistencies. The apartment is expected to be in exactly the same condition when you moved in (remember that form you filled out listing everything that wasn''t right, well if you missed it, you pay for it ;-) ) Every new hole you have added to the walls needs to be filled in (recomendation for those ""flock"" or sprayed concrete walls, just use toothpaste - this from a local). All those light fittings need to be removed and the holes should be no worse from when you arrived, for mounting them, otherwise you fix. All those windows need to be cleaned inside and out. The fans (bathroom, kitchen, etc) need to be cleaned of the dust and fat. All increases in mold on windows and bathroom etc may mean repainting or some form of repair. Anything broken must be replaced to the same standard (one local Swiss was complaining how their 8 year old dishwasher had broken and it was their cost to repair or replace to the same standard (find an identical model same age)). A lot of homes need the heating system purged and cleaned and this is your cost unless included in NK (usually is). The garden is interesting and unless in leasing agreement, is not included. Mine was in leasing agreement to clear and maintain 2 times per year. Which we did so, no problem here. It did not have to be a certain standard before we left. Generally they have different requirements to us. We had a major argument over the dining chair coverings (furnished). We were smart enough to have the wear included on the original house inspection, but he claimed we had more wear than was reasonable. We felt 5 people actually sitting in chairs for one year had more impact than one man living by himself and never being home. I will mention the end result below.... Ultimately we felt he was trying to use us to repair any faults in his house that pre-existed before we took possession for a year. We stopped negotiations and then referred him to our insurance company. He then started with them and gave them a large list of problems and costs to repair. There is supposed to be a wear and tear part of any house and the Swiss insurance system is supposed to take this into account when paying to the claimant. His total claim amounted to chf3,600 and we were given the list and asked to comment by our insurance company. He eventually received about chf2,000 to cover the chairs, mold in the bathroom and a few other items. He was not happy with our level of cleaning and particularly commented on the windows which we cleaned 2 weeks before his arrival. Apparently we needed to do same day... He also had a cleaning lady and she was supposed to come twice a month (basically to spy on us as we later discovered). We fought over this as she only came 16 out of 24 times (we were paying for this in our rent money). We suggested she would be available to complete the cleaning (his cost as he had not met all other payments). The long and short this time is that we will employ an agency who include carpet cleaning (must be done) and general apartment cleaning (cost chf1,600). They will complete to full requirements after we have moved our furniture and be reponsible for the cleaning quality to Swiss standards. I have no doubt there will still be some areas of contention and all these additional costs will be met by our insurance. Hope this has been entertaining. These sort of things are always so, after the event. Regards Allan "

Post a Reply

00abuse

" e dawson - 07:41pm Dec 19, 2000 Thanks for the info Allan, Thanks for the info... and the entertainment. E Dawson "

Post a Reply

00abuse

" Allan, funny story. Could not help but tell my fellow expat friends what might be expecting us in August, when 12 of us leave Zurich for good. Thanks for the warning, its not surprising at all. greetings Laura "

Post a Reply

00abuse