The rental guarantee
without a bank deposit
Quick and easy online, no appointment, no delays
1
You complete the form and accept the terms of our rental guarantee contract.
2
We then send the guarantee certificate to the landlord to cover your rental guarantee.
3
And you can sign the lease without having to block several months’ rent in a bank account.
HOW IT WORKS
The tenant applies for rental guarantee online. The landlord receives the guarantee certificate the same day.
THE LESSOR REDUCES HIS RISKS
As guarantor, we check the tenant’s solvency and assist the landlord in managing any claims.
The tenant DOES NOT BLOCK MONEY
The lessee does not pay blocked funds into a bank account. We guarantee the lessee’s financial commitments to the lessor for the duration of the lease.
Our commitments
Facilitating rental
The tenant can commit without having to block 25% of the annual rent. With no blocked funds, the tenant will be in a better position to pay the rent...
Monitor creditworthiness
Our management tools enable us to estimate the creditworthiness of a future tenant and identify potential claims risks during the lease term.
Bearing the financial risk
We release the tenant and assure the landlord of the tenant's solvency in the event of a breach of the lease.
Claims management
As the financial party to the contract, we are directly involved in claims management during the term of the lease.
Responsive online support
One of the added values of our services is our immediate reactivity, independent of the medium chosen to contact us. Customer service is part of our DNA
100% digital underwriting
Our fundamentals are digital. We use the full potential of IT and networks to simplify our service mission.
Discover the rental guarantee
What is the rental guarantee?
The rental guarantee is a guarantee provided by a tenant for the benefit of his landlord as part of the lease they sign together. This security enables the landlord to guarantee himself in the event of the tenant failing to meet one of his obligations under the lease contract.
The rental guarantee can take several forms, as described below. We also explain how it works, and the maximum amount that can be claimed, depending on the region.
You can obtain your online rental guarantee very easily. There are several forms of guarantee that tenants can request online. The most attractive offer is the guarantor formula we propose on our site, which saves you the hassle of blocking funds in a bank account.
What types of rental guarantee are available?
Rental guarantee paid into a blocked account
This is the most common form of rental guarantee in Belgium. The tenant opens a dedicated account with his bank, into which he deposits the amount of the deposit requested by the landlord. In exchange, the bank produces a certificate to be provided to the lessor when the lease is signed.
This account is blocked for the entire term of the lease, and can only be released by mutual agreement of the lessor and lessee at the end of the lease, or by court order.
The main banks in Belgium offering this dedicated rental guarantee account are listed here:
- Rental guarantee with Belfius bank
- Rental guarantee at ING
- BNP Paribas Fortis rental guarantee
- Rental guarantee with KBC Bank
It is also possible to deposit these funds with Caisse des Dépôts using the e-DEPO rental guarantee service offered free of charge by the French Ministry of Finance.
Bank guarantee
The rental bank guarantee is provided by the tenant’s bank. This is the bank that manages the account into which the tenant’s income is paid. The bank acts on behalf of its client, guaranteeing the tenant’s payment to the landlord.
This is a form of rental guarantee loan. The loan is interest-free for the bank.
The bank cannot refuse to provide this guarantee to its customer on the grounds of solvency. In return, the tenant undertakes to reconstitute the full amount of this guarantee before the end of the initial term of the lease (maximum 3 years). The tenant must arrange to have his professional income paid into an account opened with the same bank.
If the tenant stops making regular guarantee replenishment payments to the bank, the bank can demand that the tenant immediately replenish the bank guarantee in full.
Bank guarantee with the CPAS
The CPAS stands for Centre Public d’Action Sociale. There is a CPAS in every commune or town in Belgium, and all people who do not have sufficient means of subsistence can benefit from social assistance from the CPAS.
Under the CPAS rental guarantee scheme, tenants who do not have sufficient financial resources should contact their local CPAS. The CPAS will help the tenant obtain a bank guarantee based on the CPAS’s commitment.
A certain proportion of the social housing stock in Belgium is managed by the Agences Immobilières Sociales. These public agencies manage property owned by private investors for tenants who meet the means test for social housing assistance.
Guarantee indexed to an insurance contract
In the case of a guarantee taken out with an insurance company, the principle is simple: the tenant takes out a life insurance policy and pays into it the amount of the rental deposit. The broker who organizes the transaction issues a certificate to the landlord, assuring him that the rental deposit has been set up. The funds are blocked and invested in a life insurance policy. Interest capitalized on the investment is paid into the insurance policy.
The guarantee can only be released with the joint agreement of the lessor and the lessee, or by court order. When the rental guarantee is released, the lessee receives the capitalized interest.
The most popular contract in Belgium is the Korfine rental guarantee.
Guaranteed by a guarantor
A surety bond is available as part of a rental guarantee. The tenant’s guarantee can come from a close guarantor or a financial institution. The tenant can also obtain a guarantee from an individual, such as a friend or relative.
It is also possible to obtain a guarantee from an insurance company or financial institution.
In exchange for the guarantee, the tenant pays an annual premium indexed to the amount guaranteed. The huge advantage for the tenant is that he doesn’t have to block any funds to obtain the guarantee. We offer this opportunity to obtain a rental guarantee quickly and without blocking funds.
How does a rental guarantee work?
The rental guarantee works in several stages. The process is detailed as follows:
Constitution of the warranty
The tenant must first set up a rental guarantee. There are several ways of doing this, the main ones being :
- Block funds in a dedicated account
- Obtain a bank guarantee from the bank
- Obtaining a rental deposit from a guarantor
The amount of the guarantee required by the landlord is limited by law in Belgium. The housing code of each of the 3 administrative regions defines the legal limit on the amount payable for the rental guarantee.
Warranty certificate
Once the guarantee has been set up, the institution that establishes the existence of the rental guarantee produces a rental guarantee certificate, which is sent to the lessor of the rental property.
This guarantee certificate certifies to the landlord that the tenant has set up a rental guarantee before signing the lease.
Using the rental guarantee
Funds blocked or bonded as security are used to cover financial commitments under the lease that the tenant has not honored. To obtain the funds or the deposit, the lessor must first take legal action against the lessee and enforce the judgment obtained.
Release from rental deposit
The freezing of funds or the guarantee commitments end when the lease commitments come to an end. Once the lease has ended and the lessor has no outstanding claims, the rental guarantee can be released. To obtain release of the rental guarantee, the tenant must complete a request for restitution, which must be co-signed by the tenant and the lessor.
How much is the rental guarantee?
The federal rules laid down in the Rent Act have been replaced at regional level in Belgium by specific legislation. In 2018 for Brussels and Wallonia, and in 2019 for Flanders, each region has defined its own rules for residential leases, and therefore for the amount of the rental guarantee.
The maximum amount legally authorized for rental guarantees varies according to the type of guarantee and also according to the 3 regions in Belgium:
- In the case of a simple bank guarantee or a bank guarantee facilitated by the CPAS, the amount of the guarantee provided is 3 months’ rent for the rented property, regardless of the region of Belgium where the property is located.
- In the case of a guarantee on a blocked account :
- For a rental guarantee in Brussels, the amount payable by the landlord must not exceed 2 months’ rent;
- For a rental guarantee in Wallonia, the maximum amount is also 2 months’ rent;
- For a rental guarantee in Flanders on a blocked account, the lessor can demand up to 3 months’ rent since January 1, 2020.
What does the rental guarantee cover?
The commitments of the tenant covered by the rental guarantee are defined in the lease contract between the tenant and the landlord. The lease contract can be drafted in a number of ways, and may stipulate that :
The warranty covers all obligations
If the lease contract states that the rental guarantee covers“all the obligations” of the tenant, then all the commitments of the lease contract are covered by the guarantee. The lessor can use the guarantee to finance :
- Unpaid rent
- Unpaid rental charges
- Rental damage
- Any other unfulfilled financial commitment.
The rental guarantee is limited to rental damage
In some cases, the lease contract may limit the scope of the guarantee to rental damage only. The deposit provided by the tenant may therefore only be called upon to protect the lessor of the rented property against any damage caused by the tenant during the term of the lease. In this way, the lessor ensures that the lessee will be able to pay when damage to the rented property needs to be repaired.
In this case, the lessor will not be able to use the guarantee for non-payment of rent.
How long does it take to obtain a rental guarantee?
The deadline for providing a rental deposit varies. It depends on the type of guarantee and the third party the tenant uses as guarantor. Here are the estimated times for the main mechanisms for obtaining a rental guarantee:
Deadlines for a guarantee on an individualized bank account
All banks in Belgium offer this individualized account service, known as a rental guarantee. Each bank has its own time limit for opening an account. Some banks offer an online application form, but a manual review by one of the bank’s account managers is then required to open a new account.
Whether the process can be initiated online or the tenant needs to visit a branch, it generally takes a minimum of a few days to obtain an individualized rental guarantee account from a bank.
During periods of confinement due to COVID-19, these times were considerably extended due to the increased difficulty of reaching a contact person in the branch.
Deadlines for an e-DEPO guarantee
To open an online file on e-DEPO, you need to follow the steps defined by the online Federal Public Service. Some information, such as your landlord’s identification code, may present difficulties and slow down the process. In general, the rental guarantee obtained via e-DEPO will take a minimum of 1 week to set up;
Time limits for a bank guarantee
In order to obtain a bank guarantee for a tenant, the bank must prepare a guarantee application file.
The bank is asked to act as guarantor on behalf of the tenant. The tenant must put together a file presenting the bank with his solvency situation. It takes longer to compile this file and to process it at the bank than for a rental guarantee on an individual account.
Among other things, the tenant will have to prove that he or she will be able to replenish the guarantee in monthly installments over a maximum of 3 years.
It usually takes several weeks to obtain a bank guarantee.
Time limits for a third-party guarantee
When the rental guarantee is based on a contract of surety, it is the process of obtaining this surety that determines the time required to produce the guarantee.
For example, if the guarantee comes from a relative, it must contain the relative’s solvency file to be presented to the lessor for acceptance of the guarantee.
Another example: if the bond is obtained from an insurance company, the latter will also have a bond application process to follow.
To obtain a deposit as a rental guarantee, you need to allow at least 1 week, and up to several weeks.
How long does it take on garantie.be
This solution offers the fastest turnaround time, as you apply for the rental guarantee online.
You can obtain your rental guarantee in just a few hours.
When is the rental guarantee payable?
The rental guarantee is one of the mandatory documents to be provided when signing a lease for a property. It is customary to provide the rental guarantee certificate before signing the lease, at the same time as thedwelling insurance, commonly referred to in Belgium as fire insurance.
If the rental guarantee is made up of a payment into an individual blocked account with a bank, the transfer should be made several days before the scheduled date for signing the lease contract. This will enable the bank to confirm that the amount has arrived in the blocked account and to issue the rental guarantee. The bank will then send the guarantee certificate to the landlord by post and/or e-mail.
What assistance is available for setting up a rental guarantee?
There are several types of assistance available in Belgium to make it easier to obtain a rental guarantee. These grants are reserved for people with insufficient financial resources.
Assistance is available at regional level in Belgium. The Brussels-Capital region’s subsidies are mainly offered by the Fonds du Logement and the Fonds Brugal.
Early release from rental guarantee
It is now possible to obtain early release of funds blocked under the rental guarantee. To find out more about this new opportunity, take a look at our page on releasing rental guarantee funds. You’ll discover our service offer and understand how to recover your funds blocked in the bank until now for the rental guarantee. If you’re at the end of your lease, the guarantee will be released on production of the exit inventory.
Obtaining a guarantor as a self-employed worker
At garantie.be you can obtain a financial guarantor as a self-employed person. The process of checking the file of the applicant for a rental guarantee is not restricted according to the professional status of the tenant. Self-employed people can obtain a rental guarantee contract in just a few clicks.
