- Your rental contract should be made in writing. Read it carefully before signing.
- Do not accept a rental contract for longer than the period of your traineeship.
- Check if charges (electricity, gas, heating, internet, etc.) are included or not.
- The deposit should normally be 1 to 2 months' rent. The deposit is placed on a joint blocked bank account, or ‘compte bancaire bloqué’, in your and your landlord's names. It will be refunded at the end of the contract, after the state of the apartment, or ‘état des lieux’, has been checked.
- The 'état des lieux' includes an inventory check of everything on the property and its state at the time you move in. It should be signed by both parties immediately. The ‘état des lieux’ forms part of the rental agreement. At the end of your stay, the property will be viewed again. Your landlord may request to deduct money from your deposit if any damage has been made to the property according to the 'état des lieux'.
It is illegal to pay the deposit in cash; you would have no way of requesting the cash back at the end of your stay if you did so.
A jointly blocked account can be opened under your name at any bank.