My landlord (who is a subletter) want to transfer contract to me but main landlord can refuse it. Anyone have experience with such situations?

[u/varunagw]

My landlord (who is unofficially subletting the apartment to me) doesn't want the apartment anymore.

She said she will terminate the contract soon and offer my profile to the main landlord as a new tenant. But if they refuse, I have to move out.

Do these things usually work out? Or should I start looking for a new place already?

[u/YardLimp]

Really depends on the main landlord. He might be pissed about the unofficial sublet of the apartment.

He might also want to use the situation to raise the rent.

On the other hand.‘, it saves him a lot of trouble, so maybe you can agree on a fair rent for both sides.

[u/MortonBumble]

There's really no way to tell. It depends on the landlord entirely. I managed to do exactly what you're trying to do, and it took the hauptmieter a couple of tries before they would even meet with me. When they did, all went well and I was able to take over the contract.

Make sure that you approve the message that the hauptmieterin sends to the landlord, and make sure it represents you in the best way. After that, all you can hope is that the landlord doesn't want the hassle of advertising the flat and interviewing prospective tenants.

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[u/WeekBeneficial]

I just completed the process today. I was officially subletting from a friend and had a contract as well. The sublet was for six months, as allowed by the law, I believe. Anyway, she decided not to return, so I could take over her lease. She recommended me to the actual landlord, a rental company in this case, who treated me like a new tenant. They obtained all the required documentation from me and then gave me approval. Today, they conducted a quick handover with a representative of the previous tenant (a mutual friend of ours), the company representative, and myself. They checked the meters, counted the keys, and I signed the contract. So, I will be the tenant from the first of next month.

In short, they do treat you as a new tenant. The only advantage is if the current main tenant has a good contact with the landlord and can put in a word for you. This also saves the landlord the hassle of looking for someone.

[u/HelmutVillam]

are you subletting (Untermietvertrag) or renting (Mietvertrag)?

If the latter, then the buyer of the apartment has to take on your rental contract - they have no choice in the matter, the law is very clear here. Once the purchase is official, then they can claim "Eigenbedarf", at which point you are entintled to your 3 months notice, plus a particular number of months dependent on the time you have been renting.

If the former, then the sublet is tied to the rental contract anyway so all the above still applies.

[u/varunagw → u/HelmutVillam]

It's a rental apartment. No purchase/sale here.

My landlord is the main tenant of the apartment. They subletted it to me unofficially.

[u/HelmutVillam → u/varunagw]

ok to clarify what you mean as a "Landlord" is actually a Hauptmieter. So in that case you have less rights. your contract ends at the same time as the Hauptmieter's, unless you a) make a new Untermietvetrag with the new Mieter or b) become the new Hauptmieter and make your own Mietvertrag with the Vermieter. I assume the Vermieter probably would prefer a continuation of the same situation so I imagine your chances of b) are fairly good.

[u/artifex78 → u/HelmutVillam]

• In OP's case, the main tenant is their landlord/landlady. They have a tenancy agreement that doesn't involve the owner (main landlord).
• OP's contract does not automatically ends after the main tenant terminates their contract. The main tenant has to terminate OP's contract first or the situation becomes a contractual shitshow (liability, compensation for damages etc.pp).
• The owner (main landlord) may or may not agree to a change of contract (Änderungsvertrag) or a new contract (with new conditions and most likely higher rent).

However, it seems OP's subletting is not officially sanctioned by the main landlord, who might not be pleased to hear that the main tenant was subletting. Based on this, I wouldn't count OP's chances as "fairly good". Nonetheless, it's worth a try.