INFOSHEET Accommodation and property

Renting or purchasing property is of course one of the basic concerns when you move abroad, and it can
be a serious challenge, because laws and customs differ widely from country to country. The system
here in the Czech Republic may involve a few features which you are not familiar with, but in general
the real estate scene is not overly complicated, and many regulations and restrictions have been eased in
recent years.

Renting accommodation

Most foreigners at least when they first arrive here opt for renting a flat or house. Rental practices
here have a number of features that you should be aware of.

Who to deal with

Its best to deal with a reputable agency. Of course individuals certainly can and do offer flats and houses
to rent, but be very careful: you may run into problems, particularly when it comes to obtaining proof of
ownership (needed for official purposes see below). Good agencies will make sure that the person
leasing the flat is legally entitled to do so, and that the lease contract contains all the necessary, and
standard, provisions.

The usual fee (commission) charged by an agency is equivalent to one months rent.

The lease contract

You should, of course, be in a position to understand exactly what you are signing. Any agency accustomed
to dealing with foreigners should be able to provide you with a lease contract in both an English and a
Czech version (the latter having legal force should there be any question as to interpretation). Many can
also supply versions in other major international languages.

Ownership of the property

Proof of ownership of the property you wish to rent takes the form of an extract from the property
register. This is an important document, for two reasons.

First, only the owner (or an individual with power of attorney to represent the owner) can lease a flat or
house. However, many flats in the Czech Republic are in fact owned by local authorities, and it is illegal
to sublet these flats. Only an extract from the property register ensures that you are renting a flat legally.

Second, in order to apply for a long-term residence with the Immigration office, you will need to show
them: original of your lease (in Czech, no notarization of signature required) or a declaration by the owner
(Potvrzen o zajitn ubytovn) signed before a notary public that states s/he is indeed renting the
property to you.

Rent and security deposit

Rent is usually paid monthly, in advance.

Rents may be quoted in one of two ways. The first is the basic rent for the flat/house alone plus, separately,
the cost of the utilities (electricity, water, gas). The second is an overall rent inclusive of the utilities. You
should make sure, when a particular rent is quoted, which of these two systems it reflects. If the utilities are
calculated separately, their approximate cost per month is then added to this basic rent to make up the rent
you will actually pay each month. (This will be stated in the lease contract.) Once a year the landlord will

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 1

 calculate your real consumption of electricity, water and gas; depending on the results, you
will either receive a refund or be required to pay an additional sum to make up the difference.

Usually the lease also includes a provision for a security deposit, in most cases equal to one months rent.
This is paid at the beginning of the tenancy, and kept by the landlord to be returned at the end of the period
of occupancy, unless some damage has been caused to the property. In this case, the landlord can retain
part or all of the security deposit to cover the cost of repairing the damage.

Hand-over protocol

The lease, or (more often) a protocol attached to it, may contain such things as a description of the state of
the flat, its contents, the state of the utility metres, etc. The latter in particular is important. You should
check that the figures listed for the metres correspond to the reality; otherwise, you might be in for a big
surprise when the annual calculation of your consumption of electricity, water and gas is made. The same
is true of the description of the flat; you do not want to be held responsible for damage that was actually
caused before you started renting the place, or be accused of having made off with something that was not
there in the first place.

Duration of the lease

Most leases are signed for a period of one year. They may have a clause allowing the lease to be terminated
early, in which case the notice period can vary from one to three months. Otherwise, Czech law states that in
cases where you wish to break the lease early (or where no termination date has been specified, though this is
uncommon, especially in leases for foreigners), you must give three months notice.

Purchasing property (real estate flats, buildings, land)

Foreigners who have been in the Czech Republic for some time, or come here planning to stay for some
time, may be interested in purchasing a flat, house, cottage or cabin in the country or piece of land.
At the time of the countrys admission to the European Union in 2004, the Czechs asked for, and were
granted, a temporary exemption from an EU directive forbidding any restrictions on the purchase of
property. Since then, change has come in two stages. As of May 2009 most restrictions on the purchase of
property in the Czech Republic by foreigners were removed; some remained for land zoned as
agricultural or designated as forest. These were lifted in May 2011. This means that now subject to
certain procedures that have to be followed in the purchase of agricultural land all forms of property can
be purchased by foreigners, whether from the EU member states or elsewhere.

In no country is purchasing property a simple or straightforward process. For that reason, you should
certainly turn to a professional real estate agency to ensure that all the necessary steps have been taken and
all legal requirements fulfilled.

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 2

 Real estate agencies
The following firms in Brno specialize in catering to foreigners interested in renting a flat/house
or purchasing property.

City Real Estate

Zvinova 3
618 00 Brno
Tel.: +420 602 707 686 E-
mail: info@cityrealestate.cz
Web: www.cityrealestate.cz Member of BEC Referral Programme

This is a small firm but the two women involved had many years of experience working with
foreigners and expats in a large firm before going independent. In addition to English, they offer
services in German, Italian and Spanish. Very personal and caring service reported.

Contacts:
Andrea ern Barbora ern
Tel.: + 420 602 127 506 Tel.: +420 602 707 686

***

Foreigners.cz
Jotova 4
612 00 Brno
Tel: +420 725 973 344 E-
Mail: brno@foreigners.cz
Member of BEC Referral Programme
Web: http://brno.foreigners.cz/real-estates
Facebook: facebook.com/Foreigners.czBrno

This is a friendly agency taking care of foreigners living in the Czech Republic. New apartments
offered almost every day on FB profile. First months rent for signed contract is the charge. What
is extra, Foreigners.cz stay with you after you move in and help you with setting up utilities,
cable TV, internet, energies etc.

***
Real Spektrum
Lidick 77
602 00 Brno
Tel: +420 533 339 111, 602 156
823 E-Mail: rs@realspektrum.cz
Member of BEC Referral Programme
Web: http://www.realspektrum.cz/en
Facebook: facebook.com/realspektrumbrno

A Comprehensive real estate services for foreigners will save you the hassle of searching and
agreeing new property rent. The agent will help you find the right place and provide all the
paperwork in English including the property handover.

Contacts: Petr Broa,

petr.broza@realspektrum.cz, 724 110 161

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 3

 Bravis
Dvokova 13
602 00 Brno
Tel./fax: +420 542 211 598
E-mail: bravis@bravis.cz
Web: www.bravis.cz

A classic real estate agency, Bravis has many flats available for rent, covering a broad range
of sizes and prices and situated throughout Brno.

Contacts:
Lucie Ondrkov
Tel.: +420 725 755 575, E-mail: lucie@bravis.cz
Ji Kusk
Tel.: +420 724 772 446, E-mail: jiri@bravis.cz

***
RE/MAX Pro
Blatnho 3
616 00 Brno
Tel: +420 732 299 929 E-
mail: pro@remax-czech.cz
Web: www.re-max.cz/pro

Another classic real estate agency operating in Brno and its surroundings, part of international
RE/MAX network. They assist clients in finding properties for sale or rent, as well as wide range
of further estate-related services, such as location research based on client's requirements, school
search, settle-in assistance (contact with service providers, moving, craftsmen, etc.), area
orientation tours, etc. Meetings are possible out of office hours.

Contacts:
Tom Kratochvl (English)
Tel: +420 733 679 960, E-mail: tomas.kratochvil@re-max.cz
Radmila Kazdova (Italian)
Tel: +420 608 080 868, E-mail: radmila.kazdova@re-max.cz

***
Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 4
 Home Hunters
Ranova 4
60200 Brno
Web: www.homehunters.cz

A different approach to home hunting. No ads but you have to fill in your request first and the
agents will get back to you with suitable offers.

Contact:
Jaroslav Kov
E-mail: kovac@homehunters.cz
Tel.: +420 608 150 100

***
Czech Point 101
Pompova 35
617 Brno - Komrov
Tel.: +420 774 460 996
E-mail: brno@czechpoint101.com
Web: www.czechpoint101.com

This Canadian-owned company offers a wide range of services in real estate, property
management, mortgages, company setups and accounting. In the area of real estate, it is unusual
in that it itself manages around 130 flats, half furnished, half unfurnished. Czech Point 101 does
not charge a commission on its flat rentals.

Contact:
Pavel Pazek
E-mail: pavel@czechpoint101.com
Tel.: +420 774 460 996

***
Amigro
Maltova 7
612 00 Brno
Tel.: +420 543 214 904
Mobile: +420 774 403 434
E-Mail: info@amigro.cz
Web: www.amigro.cz

This is yet another smallish firm. In addition to English, they offer services in German.

Contacts:
Kateina Fialov
Tel.: +420 774 403 434
E-mail: k.fialova@amigro.cz

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 5

 Short term rentals
Apart from hotel rooms it is not taht easy to find short term accommodation in Brno. You can
rent a bed or a room in hostels or google some of many pensions.

We can recommend any of the following insurance companies or independent insurance advisors:

Flatio
Dominiknsk nm. 187/5
602 00 Brno
Tel: +420 778 401 251
E-Mail: expats@flatio.com
Web: http://www.flatio.com Member of the BEC Referral
Programme

Mid-term rentals of fully furnished flats for a few months (1 6 months) without a
commission, without a deposit. Internet and services are included.

Contacts: Ondej Dufek

An affordable but almost always full option is the Pyramida lodging house (Francouzsk 70, 545 222
954 / 731 616 998) with studios and one- or two-bedroom flats. Close to the Brno Technological
Park, IBM and RedHat offices is Hotel a hostel Palack (Kolejn 2905/2, 541 142 963) and student
dorm with rooms for public Koleje Josefa Taufera (Jana Babka 1861/3, 541 422 051) for 435/night,
7200/month.

Serviced but more expensive apartments are Apart Suites Brno (Cejl 67, 545 422 000) and City
Apart Hotel Brno (Komrovsk nbe 2, 545427615) or Apartment Brno (Tborskho nbe
5, 733130969).

In addition, CzechPoint 101 also informed us at some point in the past that they too rent out flats
for shorter periods of time, though this is not advertised on their website. And Foreigners.cz offer
short term accommodation as well.

Independent home search

You may, of course, search for your house, apartment or room independently. This expects you
to either get familiar with international communities and groups in Brno or search on-line in
Czech language.

The Facebook pages Multilingual Flats in Brno or Flat to Rent in Brno or Flats Brno gather
offerings and demands for accommodation of all sorts of accommodation, as well as
CouchSurfing group Accommodation in Brno.

The big on-line accommodation database servers are: www.bezrealitky.cz, www.sreality.cz.

Some of the ads are from an agency, some from proprietors and landlords directly. If you were
renting from the owner without real estate agent being present, you dont pay commission to the
agency but you dont have anyone checking legal accuracy of the lease. Before signing, send it to
us and we will have a look at it.

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 6

 Sharing Flat (spolubydlen)
If you decide to share a flat with somebody, one room is always far much cheaper than paying a
flat. Your colleagues at work, friends, local or Erasmus students might be looking for a flat
mate. Look around Facebooks English Speaking group or Multilingual Flats in Brno or Flat to
Rent in Brno, your workplaces intranet or try some of the sharing-flat websites:
www.spolubydlici.cz/en operates in English,
www.chcispolubydlici.cz is only in Czech and
http://cz.easyroommate.com has sometimes posting about Brno too.

The beginnings in a new flat can be tough. Shall you be in need of quality laundry services we can
recommend

Speed Queen Laundry EDEN

Purkyova 35g
612 00 Brno
Tel: +420 604 595 559
E-Mail: sq.brno@post.cz
Web: http://www.laundryBrno.cz Member of the BEC Referral Programme

Self-service laundry, providing high-quality, speedy washing and drying facilities suited to high volumes
of laundry. Member of a world-wide chain.

Contacts: Michal Rosendorf

Accommodation and property Brno Expat Centre Page 7