Hints & Tips for considering when looking to rent property on Malta.

As its getting harder and harder to find decent affordable accommodation in Malta  a facebook group has been formed to collect information for both landlords and tenants to use by way of showcasing Landlords properties that are supplied with a signed form H and thus lower residential tariffs for utilities. and also tenants who are looking for such properties

please feel free to search for them on Facebook....  "Property under €800 with Form H, Malta " - it may take some of the pain out of trying to find a suitable property without the pitfalls usually associated with non Form H properties .

Good luck

NB am neither an agent nor a landlord....

as a further note if any tenants need more detailed information regarding utilities etc and tenancies in general = please feel free to search for Tenants Information Portal - Malta on facebook....  plenty of hints and tips etc there plus uptodate news too

beware these words in your contract -

Tale Quale' (As seen)


Please be very aware, that if these words appear on your Lease, you may well be walking in to the totally unexpected.
If a Lease carries these words, you must, but must be vigilant in checking the property and the inventory, because once you sign that contract, you could be signing up for major problems. Hollow damp walls, non functioning water heaters, (check date of installation and any service records). Oven and hob, again check date of installation. Electric hobs, check all plates are working. Toilet flushing's. Beds, mattresses and slats. Take pictures of any obvious damage and do not be rushed. Check any bedding for stains, tears or other damage.
If you are unhappy with anything, write it down and if the LL agrees to replace write that down too and sign that paper along with the contract. Dated.
If you don't do this, you will find that Tale Quale (as seen) could lose you your deposit, and worse.

The most difficult thing is get the landlords to answer you! I have been looking for a room for two weeks and they dont answer the emails!!
Im starting to get annoyed...

there is a shortage of affordable accommodation and a glut of people looking so they can pick and choose who to respond to....

try phoning them

Questions EVERY TENANT needs to ask their prospective landlord or the estate agent used
1. is the property registered with the tax authority (required since 1st april 2017) - can they produce proof
2. will the property have form H signed before contract is signed - can they produce it?
3. does the property have a current valid Energy Performance Certificate (law since 2009) can they produce it?
4. if short term let - does the owner have a current valid MTA license - can they produce it?

Thanks for the content !

probably a more important question  - is the property you are about rent actually owned by the person you are about to agree paying rent to - are they legally able to do so - i say this as i now know a couple of people who have been caught out by this and have not only lost a deposit but their rent as well..... so be wary

Hi,

Thank you for posting that info, it will be a great help to me as I will shortly be looking for a 3 bed apartment for my family (wife & 2 young sons).

I am thinking of using either Chestertons, Belair or Dahalia mainly because I get a discount on their fees via my new employer.

Has anyone had experience of these agents?
Specifically in and around the St. Julian's, Swieqi area which is where we want to live.

Also, do the agent's fees need to be paid every month or is it a one off fee?

Thanks in advance for any/all answers and info. Looking forward to joining you all in sunny Malta very soon!

Agents fee are a one off.

Thank you

a very very expensive area now

Hi,

Can you quantify exactly what very, very expensive actually means please? For say a 3 bed apartment?

Do remember I am coming from London, which is just about as expensive a place for property as you will find in Europe if not the world.

Cheers

in that area you probably wont get anything decent for less than below - -the rentals here have gone crazy with greed.....  and is not showing any signs of letting up  - sorry for the pun - and combined with the falling pound, low wages, is not a great combination to start a new life......

am sure if you really look hard you may fund something - but its getting harder and harder to do  so - currently many are struggling to find decent accom within their budgets and as a result are considering their options.
Some  existing tenants are being forced to leave their property as some LLs are beign abusive and making their lives difficult because they know or think they can get more cash out of desperate prospective tenants....

good luck



Sliema:
700€ 2 bedroom apartment
1000€ 1 bedroom Maisonette
1300€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1600€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1700€ 2 bedroom apartment
1800€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
1850€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1950€ 4 bedroom apartment
2000 € 3 bedroom Apartment
2700€ 4 bedroom Town House
2800€ 3 Apartment
3000€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
3500€ 4 bedroom Apartment
4500€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
6500€ 3 Bedroom Apartment
St.Julians:
1200€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1300€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1350€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1400€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1400€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 2 bedroom Detached Villa
1700€ 1 bedroom Apartment
1800€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2000€ 2 bedroom Apartment
2200€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
2300€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2600€ 2 bedroom Apartment
2800€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
3000€ 3 bedroom Apartment
3750€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
4000€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
4500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
5500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Gzira:
850€ 1 bedroom Apartment
950€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1250€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1600€ 4 bedroom Apartment
1600€ 1 bedroom Penthouse
1700€ 2 bedroom Apartment
2000€ 2 bedroom Apartment
2500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Msida:
700€ 1bedroom Apartment
825€ 1 bedroom Apartment
1050€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1400€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1660€ 2 bedroom Apartment
3000€ 3 bedroom Town House
Valetta:
900€ 1 bedroom Studio Apartment
900€ 1 bedroom Maisonette
1500€ 2 bedroom Apartment
2800€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
San Gwann:
1200€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2000€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
3600€ 5 bedroom Terraced House
Paceville:
2500€ 2 bedroom Apartment
4000€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
Tigne:
3500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
4500€ 4 bedroom Town House
Melliha:
900€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1000€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1600€ 3 bedroom Terraced House
1950€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Swieqi:
900€ 1 bedroom Apartment
1350€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1600€ 4 bedroom Apartment
1650€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1700€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1800€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2000€ 3 bedroom Town House
2000€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2800€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
3000€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
3200€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
3500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Marsaskala:
800€ 2 bedroom Maisonette
Mgarr:
900€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1000€ 3 bedroom Terraced House
Qawra:
950 1 bedroom penthouse
1300€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Ghargur:
950€ 3 bedroom Penthouse
Wardija:
1000€ 1 bedroom Studio Apartment
4750€ 3 bedroom Detached Villa
Bugibba:
1000€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1100€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1500€ 3 bedroom Apartment
St.Paul's bay:
650€ 1 bedroom Apartment
850€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
900€ 2 bedroom Apartment
950€ 2 bedroom Maisonette
1000€ 3 bedroom Apartment
1350€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1350€ 2 bedroom Apartment
1700€ 2 bedroom Terraced House
2000€ 3 bedroom Apartment
2000€ 2 bedroom Apartment
Naxxar:
1200€ 3 bedroom Apartment
Zebbug:
1400€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
1600€ 5 bedroom Terraced House
Balzan:
1500€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
Tax'Xbiex
1800€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
Ta'l-Ibragg:
1800€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
Madliena
1900€ 2 bedroom Maisonette
Birkirkara:
900€ 2 bedroom Penthouse
1300€ 3 bedroom Maisonette
2000€ 4 bedroom Terraced House
2250€ 3 bedroom Detached Villa
2500€ 3 bedroom Detached Villa
3000€ 4 bedroom Palace/Castle
Manikata:
5000€ 3 bedroom Semi Detached Villa
Iklin:
10000€ 7 bedroom Detached Villa

Thanks for that info, very helpful and a lot within my budget it seems, so hopefully I wont have too many problems.

On another rental based issue, do you have any idea how much monthly bills for Electric, Gas, Water, etc are roughly going to be for a family of four?

Thanks again

thats entirely  dependent on the tariff you find yourself on -  residential is the cheapest tariff but some property landlords wont allow you to have it .  in your case the tariff you need to demand to be on will be residential with four persons registered on the account  - - residential with zero persons registered is the most expensive

Gas prices http://www.liquigasmalta.com/latest-prices/

Electric prices - https://www.rews.org.mt/#/en/fa/31

water prices - https://www.rews.org.mt/#/en/fa/35

Great, thank you, I will check them out.

Hi,

Great first post, thanks.

But, you mentioned getting a short term let to start with, however it seems nobody does these anymore. It is all 1 year minimum, however I presume all lettings contracts would include a notice period of some sort, one month perhaps.

If you didn't settle and decided to go home after 3 months, you should be able to give the landlord notice of your departure and end the contract early. Please can someone confirm if this is or is not the case here in Malta and as standard how long are the notice periods?

Thanks,

Usually if you terminate the contract before its term, you lose your deposit, which is 1 month's rent.

and check that your contract doesnt include a clause which implies that you must pay the balance of rents due to end of contract

Could you recommend renting a farmhouse on Gozo. Is it safe to live in one of these. I read on another site that it was not safe

theyre not really farmhouses now theyre more of an new houses or apartments built on the site of an old farmhuse, or some have been renovated  but id be very wary of it as many maltese young uns holiday and party in them during the long summer weekends. weve taken a long weekend in one and it turned out friday night came round and it was party time for the maltese till late sunday night

Thanks for that info Toon

Yokita wrote:

Could you recommend renting a farmhouse on Gozo. Is it safe to live in one of these. I read on another site that it was not safe

It depends where you live as regards noise from holiday lets, we have lived in two houses in Gharb one was next door to holiday lets and we did suffer from noise the other not, we now live in a penthouse in Victoria which is quieter.  Not too sure what you mean about safe.

The noise factor doesnt bother me so much I was looking more at the space. We not used to an apartment as we have been living on a farm here. With regards to safety i was referring to house breaking etc.

Yokita wrote:

The noise factor doesnt bother me so much I was looking more at the space. We not used to an apartment as we have been living on a farm here. With regards to safety i was referring to house breaking etc.

You will not find somewhere on Gozo with a lot of land as its a very small island, as regards safety you will find it very safe with next to no crime, people go out here and leave windows open and quite often you see front doors unlocked.  If you have not been here before it is advisable to visit first.

Yokita wrote:

Could you recommend renting a farmhouse on Gozo. Is it safe to live in one of these. I read on another site that it was not safe

I can't understand where you read that, but compared to most places, Gozo is very, very safe. Very little crime of any sort with crime against a person almost unheard of. Never heard of a mugging or even pickpockets, sometimes on Malta but not Gozo.

As for Farmhouses they are usually reasonably sized properties which at one time housed animals as well as humans, some are conversions of old animal buildings. I have never heard or seen an apartment described as a 'Farmhouse' on Gozo and am now in my fifth year here.

You will not find space and land here, even a detached house is unusual unless you pay a substantial amount of money! If you choose the wrong place you may find holiday lets nearby which may be noisy if filled with Maltese tourists! 
Stay somewhere you like for a while and check out the area at different times of day and week before you decide where to settle.
Ideally, to start with at least, only take on a long let, do not buy unless you have found the ideal place which you want to live in very long term. Most properties are overpriced and difficult to sell.

Visit first, for as long as you can.

Good Luck

Thank you so much that was my idea. To first rent and move around until we find the area that we want to stay in.

If you decide to live in Gozo avoid Marsalform and Xlendi as these areas are very touristy, nice to visit the many restaurants but not to live if you want to avoid noise, all areas are very safe as stated before.
Why would farmhouses not be safe?

Perhaps referring to construction, in which case that could be said of all properties   
or, for us UK expats, farmhouse usually means it may be remote, where here they are in village centres.  Just a thought.
Ray

Hi,

This might have been answered already, but if you get brown water when turning on the taps, just for a few seconds, is this something to worry about and raise with the landlord?

Savak wrote:

Hi,

This might have been answered already, but if you get brown water when turning on the taps, just for a few seconds, is this something to worry about and raise with the landlord?

Is this water from the mains (usually - but not always - in the kitchen) or from the water tank on the roof? (Usually in the bathroom) The lid of the water tank might be broken or even missing, so there is dirt inside... we had this last year, so I climbed up the roof to clean it out...

If you have brown water at the kitchen tap get in touch with the Water Services Co. or ask your landlord to, as it is a legal requirement that the cold supply to the kitchen must be direct from the mains so should be ok.
Any other taps, as Bernie said check your tank, but I would talk to your landlord first before doing anything else..

Ray

Thanks for the quick replies, it is water in the bathroom so must be the tank on the roof. I have notified the landlord.

its also  good idea to ensure that they lid is tied down too as mozzie s can get in and lay eggs etc

Re: Brown tap water etc, I have seen that on occasion, it usually happens when that tap hasn't been used in a while (months or years). I have two floors, two bathrooms. if I don't run the water for a few months downstairs, it runs brown briefly at first. Also, while I'm here commenting, this: I have been in Malta nearly 10 years, and filtered the tap water for drinking with never a problem. However, I recently had a plumbing leak, and had to replace a section of pipe. Looking at the cross cut pipe, I could not believe the rust and pitch black, sooty build-up that had virtually blocked the entire metal pipe. I live in a maisonette that was probably built in the 50's, like a lot of property here. The plumbing is ancient and heavily rusted. I can't tell you what the black, fine soot is... Even though I have drunk filtered tap water for all the time I've been here, I now drink bottled water. Just my personal experience.

Wow! Thank you, Redmik! This is a lot of useful information I wouldn't have thought about going in.

Do you know of any good, reputable leasing agents or agencies? My daughter and I are moving there from Florida this summer and it is very important that we find a good place in a catchment area with a lot of expatriots for her primary school.

~Stacey

Glad you found the information helpful, unfortunately you will not get an answer from Redmick as he left the island about three years ago, hopefully someone else can help.  Have you looked at the advertising section on here?

Your posts have been very helpful thanks

Below are the answers from a real estate agent. Does it make sence or he is trying to "sell" properties?

1. Is the property registered with the tax authority (required since 1st of April 2017) - can the landlord produce proof?

Properties are not registered with the Tax authority but the owner is and therefore once the owner rents his property he / she has to pay 15% tax to the tax department however there is no certificate to prove this.. Finally this is the responsibility of the owner and not the Agent or the tenant.


2. Will the property have form H signed before contract is signed - can the landlord produce it?

All properties should be in a position to sign the said form, however this is only done once a contract is signed and the payment is effected.


3. Does the property have a current valid Energy Performance Certificate (law since 2009) can they produce it?

Again every property should have a valid EPC certificate and the owner should be in a position to give the tenant a copy of the said certificate.


4. Is the property offered actually owned by the person I am about to agree paying rent to - are he legally able to do so?

All properties in Malta either belong to the respective owners or form part of a Company that owns the property and possibly other property, therefore when one signs a rental agreement, it would be with the owner or Company that owns the property..