Replacement tenant Zurich
Find a replacement tenant in Zurich
We advertise your flat, show it to applicants and check their files. You decide whom we propose to the landlord. Fee: one month's gross rent.
Request a replacement tenant search- One month's gross rent
- Viewings held by alphakey
- Written brokerage contract
- Zurich and left lake shore
alphakey finds a replacement tenant (Nachmieter) for your rented flat in the city of Zurich, on the left shore of the lake and in the surrounding area: listing, viewings, checking application files and proposing a candidate to the landlord. The fee is one month's gross rent, agreed in a written brokerage contract with you as the outgoing tenant. Under Art. 264 of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO), a tenant who moves out without observing the notice period or termination date is released from the lease by proposing a single replacement tenant who is acceptable to the landlord, solvent and willing to take over the lease on the same terms. According to the Zurich courts, the landlord may normally take 10 to 30 days to review the replacement tenant (gerichte-zh.ch, retrieved on 09.11.2026).
alphakey GmbH, Wettswil am Albis · 10.11.2026
Without an acceptable replacement tenant you owe the rent until the next termination date you can meet with the notice period, unless the flat is re-let earlier (Art. 264 CO).
Without a replacement tenant you pay at most
CHF 6,600
Double rent that a suitable replacement tenant can avoid. Not legal advice.
What does alphakey do when finding a replacement tenant?
When you need a replacement tenant in Zurich, alphakey does the work between your decision to move out and the proposal to the landlord: we advertise the flat with photos and text, hold the viewings ourselves and check the applicants' files and creditworthiness. You decide whom we propose to the landlord.
- Writing and publishing the listing, with your details on rent, ancillary costs and move-in date
- Answering enquiries and holding viewings on site
- Collecting application files, checking them for completeness and checking the applicants' creditworthiness
- Discussing a suitable replacement tenant with you and proposing them to the landlord with a complete file
How does the search for a replacement tenant work?
The search for a replacement tenant with alphakey runs in four steps, from the first conversation to the proposal to the landlord. How long it takes depends on the viewings and on the landlord's review; the Zurich courts put that review at 10 to 30 days in normal cases. We do not promise a fixed duration.
Conversation and brokerage contract
You describe the flat, the rent and your planned move-out. If we take on the search, we record the assignment in a written brokerage contract. The fee is one month's gross rent.
Listing and viewings
We write the listing, answer the enquiries and show the flat to applicants on site.
Checking files and creditworthiness
We collect the documents and check completeness and creditworthiness. You see the shortlist and decide whom we propose.
Proposal to the landlord
We submit the replacement tenant with a complete file. Whether they can take over the lease is the landlord's decision.
What does finding a replacement tenant cost?
Finding a replacement tenant with alphakey costs one month's gross rent. Gross rent is the net rent plus the ancillary costs under the lease; with a net rent of CHF 2’000 and ancillary costs of CHF 200, the fee is therefore CHF 2’200. The client is the outgoing tenant; flat seekers pay alphakey nothing. We record the assignment and the fee in a written brokerage contract before we start (Mäklervertrag, Art. 412 et seq. CO). The enquiry is without obligation.
Without a replacement tenant, you pay at most the rent until the next termination date you can meet with the notice period (Art. 264 para. 2 CO); the double-rent calculator on this page multiplies the monthly rent by the number of months. For example, with three months' notice and termination dates at the end of March and the end of September, if you give notice in November, the next possible date is the end of March; count the months from your move-out date until then in the calculator.
| Task | Searching yourself | With alphakey |
|---|---|---|
| Listing | You | alphakey |
| Enquiries and viewings | You | alphakey |
| Collecting and checking files | You | alphakey |
| Deciding whom to propose | You | You |
| Proposal to the landlord | You | alphakey |
| Cost | Your time | One month's gross rent |
What does Swiss law say about replacement tenants?
A replacement tenant (Nachmieter; in the statute a “new tenant”) is a person who is willing to take over your lease on the same terms if you move out without observing the notice period or termination date. If the landlord accepts them, they take over the lease on the existing terms (Zurich courts). Under Art. 264 CO, a tenant who returns the flat without observing the notice period or termination date is released from the lease obligations only by proposing a new tenant who is acceptable to the landlord, solvent and willing to take over the lease on the same terms. One such tenant is enough. The former tenancy law required three; the revised law has applied since July 1990 (Swiss Tenants' Association).
Without a suitable replacement tenant, you owe the rent until the date on which the lease can ordinarily be ended (Art. 264 para. 2 CO). The landlord must offset what is earned by re-letting earlier (para. 3). The landlord does not have to accept the proposed replacement tenant; if the landlord rejects an acceptable one, you owe no more rent, according to the Zurich courts, from the date on which that person would have taken over the flat. What applies if the landlord refuses, which deadlines and termination dates count and what the letter to the landlord looks like are explained in the guide to early termination of a lease.
Are you an owner looking for a tenant?
For owners letting a flat for the first time or again, alphakey also handles the tenant search itself, for one month's gross rent: listing with photos and text, viewings, checking files and creditworthiness, handover with a handover report and keys. The process is described on the page tenant search for owners.
Questions about finding a replacement tenant in Zurich
Who pays alphakey for the search?
The search is paid for by the outgoing tenant, who is the client under the written brokerage contract. The fee is one month's gross rent. Flat seekers who respond to the listing pay alphakey nothing.
What documents does a replacement tenant need?
Landlords usually ask for a debt enforcement register extract (Betreibungsregisterauszug) to check solvency, according to the Swiss Tenants' Association. For solvency, the Zurich courts use the rule of thumb that the rent should not exceed one third of net income. According to the Swiss Tenants' Association, anyone without proof of salary may be able to show that the rent is covered with a confirmation from the social welfare authority.
Does alphakey guarantee that I can leave my lease early?
No. alphakey searches, checks and proposes a suitable replacement tenant. Whether the landlord accepts the proposal and from when you are released from the lease is not in our hands. We do not promise success or a deadline.
Where does alphakey search for replacement tenants?
alphakey searches for replacement tenants in the city of Zurich, on the left shore of Lake Zurich from Kilchberg to Thalwil, and in the surrounding area. alphakey holds the viewings itself. We tell you after your enquiry whether your address is within our area.
General information, not legal advice. Your lease and the Swiss Code of Obligations are decisive. The calculator shows a maximum: the landlord must offset what is earned by re-letting earlier (Art. 264 para. 3 CO). If in doubt, contact the conciliation authority of your district or the Swiss Tenants' Association (Mieterinnen- und Mieterverband).
- Art. 264 OR, vorzeitige Rückgabe der Mietsache (fedlex)
- Art. 412 OR, Mäklervertrag (fedlex)
- Gerichte Kanton Zürich: Vorzeitige Rückgabe der Mietsache
- Bundesgericht, Urteil 4P.6/2007 vom 24.04.2007, E. 4.1 (Ablehnung eines Nachmieters)
- Mieterinnen- und Mieterverband: Miettipp ausserterminlicher Auszug (04.09.2024)
- Mieterinnen- und Mieterverband: Nachmieterschaft und ausserterminlicher Auszug
- HEV Kanton Zürich: Nachmieter
Let us find your replacement tenant
Send us the address, monthly rent and planned move-out. Victoria and Artur Pfeifer will get back to you and tell you whether we can take on the search.
+41 76 539 56 98