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 Luc Deflorenne (archives)

The Ville de Luxembourg has joined forces with the police to promote the “les chambers meublées” campaign. Not only is it aimed at raising awareness among both landlords and tenants, but it will also involve more systematic inspections of rented properties.

Launching the campaign, mayor Paul Helminger said that in a constantly changing population--some 10 percent of residents move in and out of the city every year--people from all strata of society often end up renting a furnished room, including professionals who want inexpensive temporary accommodation while seeking more permanent living quarters. The new campaign will help put a stop to them being “exploited”, as Helminger put it.

Alderman in charge of housing, Xavier Bettel (photo), says the campaign has four main pillars. Firstly the police will make more systematic checks on rooms for rent to ensure they conform to the minimum legal requirements regarding size (they should be at least 9 square meters), sanitation and furnishings.

Secondly, a campaign leaflet detailing these requirements will be distributed and also be available at the Bierger Center where new arrivals to the city register their residency. Thirdly, the authorities will send a letter to landlords explaining their obligations.

And finally an appeal will go out to landlords with furnished rooms for rent to register their income and the names of their tenants.

“Many tenants are among the weaker members of society,” says Bettel. “They are refugees, asylum seekers, students or those on RMG (the guaranteed minimum wage) and are often afraid to make an official complaint to the authorities.”

Bettel described some of the rooms seen by the city’s housing service inspectors and police officers, citing rooms under stairs, in cellars or even in courtyards and often in dangerous conditions. And the tenants are often made to pay between 350 and 750 euros per month for substandard accommodation. “We cannot allow this disregard for human dignity,” says Bettel.

The city does have the power to close down rooms that do not meet the minimum standard, though in cases that can be remedied quickly police can give the landlord a warning and a deadline to make the necessary improvements. In the worst cases, the judiciary may decide to prosecute, and landlords found guilty can be fined up to 125,000 euros and face up to eight years in jail.