About municipal apartments in general
Will the apartments also be available to buy?
Generally, municipal apartments are not offered for sale. This principle applies to the apartments advertised here – we are not selling them, only offering them for lease.
I would like to lease an apartment in a particular municipal district. What should I do?
We are only offering apartments for lease in blocks located within the central municipal district (Moravská Ostrava a Přívoz). If you are interested in living outside the city centre, you can look at available apartments that have been entrusted to the individual municipal districts. You will find the necessary information on the websites of the municipal districts (e.g. Moravská Ostrava a Přívoz, Ostrava Jih, Poruba, and others).
Will you be offering more apartments for rental (lease) in the future?
In the upcoming years, the City of Ostrava is planning to build new apartment blocks with rental apartments. One such project that is currently underway is the Nové Laubydevelopment in the city centre; when it is complete, the City will purchase part of the development and offer the apartments for rental (lease). Another planned apartment complex, at Kostelní – Biskupská, , will create 33 new rental apartments.
Is the City offering any commercial premises for rental (lease)?
Yes, the City is offering business premises for rental (lease). The apartment blocks listed on this website include three commercial units (54 – 101 m2) including WC and technical facilities. You can check current availability HERE.
The rental (lease) process
How can I apply to lease a municipal apartment?
Tenants are selected via a selection procedure. You can apply to be considered via by submitting the form Application for the lease of a municipal apartment, which can be found HERE. You will also need to keep a close eye on this website for the dates and deadlines of the selection procedures, because applications will not be accepted if they are submitted after the deadline. If you can’t find dates and deadlines for the apartments, that means that they are currently fully occupied.
The final tenant is selected using the “envelope method”.
What is the envelope method?
The envelope method is a process for selecting the final tenant, based on the principle of the best bid wins. The name comes from the way in which the bids are submitted – in sealed envelopes. The envelope contains the interested party’s bid for the amount of rent they are prepared to pay.
What conditions do I have to meet in order to apply to lease an apartment (e.g. exclusion of people who are insolvent)?
According to the general terms and conditions, the following conditions need to be met:
Interested parties must be of adult age and must have permanent residence in the Czech Republic.
At the time of submitting the application, the interested party does not have, and has not had for an uninterrupted period of twelve months, any unpaid and overdue financial obligations towards the City of Ostrava, its municipal districts, commercial companies owned by the City of Ostrava, and state institutions.
Interested parties exclude those persons who, at the time of submitting the application and for a period of three years prior to submitting the application, were in tenancy of an apartment and this tenancy expired due to the expiry of the fixed tenancy period because the tenancy was not prolonged as a consequence of the tenant’s violation of their tenancy obligations.
Interested parties exclude those persons who, at the time of submitting the application and for a period of three years prior to submitting the application, sub-leased an apartment owned by the City of Ostrava or entrusted to one of its municipal districts to a third party without obtaining the permission of the City of Ostrava or the relevant municipal district.
Interested parties exclude those persons who, at the time of submitting the application, are bankrupt in the form of insolvency as defined by the provisions of Section 3, Subsections 1 and 2 of Act no. 182/2006 Sb. on bankruptcy and settlement (the Insolvency Act), which defines a debtor as bankrupt if that debtor has at least two creditors and outstanding financial obligations that have remained unpaid for a period of more than thirty days after the due date and which the debtor is unable to pay, i.e. particularly if the debtor has ceased to pay a substantial proportion of their financial obligations or has failed to pay them for a period of more than three months after the due date, or if it is not possible to settle any of the financial obligations by enforcing a court decision or by seizure of the debtor’s property.
To be included in the selection procedure, the interested party must complete the application correctly and must submit it within the stipulated deadline, including all required supporting documentation.
For more information on the terms and conditions, see HERE.
What criteria determine the decision to select an applicant as a tenant?
Above all, you need to meet the criteria set by the City of Ostrava. If you fail to meet these criteria and follow the rules, your application may be excluded from the selection procedure. The administrator will then rank the bids received depending on the bid price offered by each applicant.
What documents do I need to submit along with my application?
You can find a complete list of the required documentation in the terms and conditions and the list of forms. The documents that you need to attach to the application include a sworn declaration stating that you do not owe any money to the City of Ostrava, its municipal districts, commercial companies owned by the City of Ostrava, and state institutions. You also need to submit a certificate confirming this fact, issued by the appropriate department of Ostrava City Authority (this certificate also needs to be issued for the person who will be your co-tenant – your husband/wife or partner). You can find the documents HERE.
How long does the entire process last, from the application for the lease of a particular apartment to the signature of the lease agreement and the actual move?
The entire process lasts from 1 to 2 months.
What if I’m not selected? Can I submit an application for more than one apartment, to increase my chances?
You can submit applications for more than one apartment using the same form, but you can only become the tenant of one apartment. If your bid is found to be the best bid, the lease agreement will be concluded for the apartment listed in your application as the highest priority.
Can I submit an application if I am already a tenant in another municipal apartment?
Yes, you can, but before signing the lease agreement for your new apartment, you must present a document proving that you have given notice to terminate your tenancy of your current apartment. The same applies if you are the tenant of a non-municipal apartment. Also, according to the terms and conditions, if you are already the owner of a residential property located within the cadastral area of the City of Ostrava, then within eight months from the signature of the lease agreement with the City of Ostrava, you must prove that you no longer own that property (by submitting an extract from the cadastral register).
General rules and terms of tenancy
How are the apartments furnished and equipped?
Usually the apartment has kitchen units including a stove or hotplates and an oven. It will also have a bathroom and WC. For full details of individual apartments, see the catalogue of apartments.
Can I keep pets in the apartment?
According to the law, the lessor (the owner of an apartment) cannot prohibit the tenant from keeping pets. So yes, you can keep a pet, but it must not have a negative impact on the lives of your fellow tenants.
Can I have other people living in the apartment without the consent of the owner?
Other people besides the tenant can also live in the apartment, but you must always immediately inform the lessor (the owner) of the number of people living there. You are not permitted to sub-lease the apartment (to have a sub-tenant living there)!
Can I sub-lease the apartment to a third party?
Sub-leasing the apartment is not permitted.
Can I officially register the apartment as my place of permanent residence?
Provided that you have a valid lease agreement, you are legally permitted to register the apartment as your place of permanent residence (even without the consent of the owner).
Can I register the apartment as the address of a business or organization?
The City Council will decide on such cases on an individual basis.
Can I smoke in the apartment?
Smoking is permitted in apartments, provided that there are no electronic fire alarms and provided that the regulations of the apartment block do not prohibit smoking.
Concluding the lease agreement
Will I need to pay any fees before signing the lease agreement (administrative fees, a deposit, the first rent payment, etc.)?
Before signing the lease agreement, you will need to pay a returnable security deposit totalling three times the monthly rent. This security deposit will be held by the lessor in a separate bank account, and it will be used to settle any debts incurred as a consequence of failure to pay rent or other costs of services associated with the use of the apartment.
What deposit do I have to pay?
The deposit (security deposit) is three times the monthly rent.
Is the deposit returnable?
Yes, your security deposit is returnable – unless it has been used to settle any debts you may incur or to pay for any damage to the apartment. The lessor (the owner of the apartment) will return the deposit to you within 30 days after the end of the lease.
Is it possible to pay the deposit in instalments?
No, it must be paid as a single sum.
What is the lease period?
The lease agreement is concluded for a maximum of one year. The tenancy period will be prolonged if you meet all your obligations as the tenant (as specified in the lease agreement) properly and on time. This primarily means that you must pay your rent and behave in an appropriate manner.
After signing the lease agreement, when I can move in to the apartment?
You can move in after the apartment has been formally handed over to you and after you have met all the required conditions set out in the lease agreement.
I am a tenant
What services does the City provide to its tenants?
The main services are cleaning in shared areas within apartment buildings, plus the bin storage and collection areas, provision of utilities connections (water, electricity, gas if applicable, heating, sewerage), annual calculation of fees for services connected with tenancy, legally required maintenance and repairs of apartments, etc.
Will the rent rise?
Yes, as set out in the inflation clause of the lease agreement, which enables the lessor (the owner) to raise rent in accordance with rises in inflation..
How do I pay the rent?
By bank transfer.
Who can I contact if something happens in the apartment?
Technical problems in apartments are handled by the building administrator. If you have any questions, you can contact the administrator by e-mail on info@byty.ostrava.cz or by phone on +420 722 954 001.
How do I give notice to terminate the lease?
You will need to send notice of termination (in writing) to the lessor (the owner). Don’t forget that the period of notice begins on the first day of the calendar month following the date on which you give notice to terminate the lease. You still need to pay rent throughout the entire period of notice. You can also terminate the lease earlier, by mutual consent; the lessor (the owner of the apartment) has to approve the termination. If you have any questions, please contact the building administrator.
How do I pay for services and utilities?
The building administrator usually sends a bill for services and selected utilities by the end of April for the previous year, and the bill is payable by August. Some utilities are paid directly by the tenant to an external utility provider.
My tenancy period will soon expire. What should I do?
The lessor (the owner of the apartment) will prolong the tenancy period provided that you meet the contractual requirements set out in your lease agreement. You can also contact the administrator for further details.
Do I have to give notification of changes in my name or contact details?
Yes, you need to tell the building administrator, as specified in the lease agreement.
Do I need to give notification if there is a change in the number of people living in the apartment?
Yes, you need to tell the building administrator, as specified in the lease agreement.
