Online viewing of a Warsaw flat: what to check on video and what to ask the landlord

An online viewing of a Warsaw flat is a video call from inside the flat in which you decide what is shown and put your questions to the landlord from a list. It helps you rule out weak options and see the real condition of the place, but it does not replace seeing the flat in person and it does not prove that the person on camera has the right to let it. Whatever is agreed on the call should end up in the written agreement before you pay anything.

Below: how a viewing works, what to ask to see, what to ask the landlord and what to do with the answers. The legal provisions were checked on 7 October 2026; sources are at the end.

How does an online flat viewing work?

A typical sequence:

1. Book a daytime slot. Daylight shows stains, cracks and signs of damp far better than a lamp-lit evening (practical tip).
2. Send your list in advance. What you want to see and what you want to ask. That keeps the call from turning into a quick walk-through.
3. Follow a route: building entrance and front door, hallway, rooms, kitchen, bathroom, balcony, meters. You say what to show: “turn left”, “closer”, “open that cupboard”.
4. Take your time. A small flat usually takes about 20-30 minutes (our assessment), a larger one longer.
5. After the call, ask for the answers in writing and for anything you did not manage to see: photos, meter readings, documents.

If the landlord does not speak a language you understand, you need someone to interpret in real time. A translation app copes with everyday phrases, but amounts, dates and contract terms are better confirmed in writing.

How is a live video call different from a video that was sent to you?

	Live call	Recording sent to you
Who chooses the shot	You: ask them to turn, zoom, open	Whoever filmed it
When it was filmed	Now: you can ask them to step to the window and show the courtyard	Unknown, could be old or taken from another listing (our assessment)
Checking details	You can ask them to run a tap, open a door, show a meter	Only what happened to be in frame
What you keep	Nothing, unless the call is recorded	A file you can rewatch and show family

A sent video works as a first filter and as an archive for comparison. A live call gives you more control, and a refusal to show a specific spot in real time is a warning sign. But agreeing to a call proves nothing by itself: a person with keys can show you a flat from the inside without having any right to let it (our assessment).

In its warnings about rental scams, the police advise against deciding on the strength of photos and a description, recommend seeing the flat yourself and say not to send money to strangers (Policja Katowice, 29 March 2025). If you cannot travel, a video call combined with a document check is a compromise, not an equal substitute for a visit. Signs of a fake listing are covered in How to spot a fake rental listing.

What should you ask the landlord to show on camera?

• Building and entrance. The front door and lock, the entry phone, stairs, lift, letterboxes. The state of the stairwell tells you how the building is managed.
• Water. Run the cold and hot taps in the kitchen and bathroom for a minute: pressure, colour, how quickly the hot water arrives. Flush the toilet, look under the sink and behind the toilet for leaks.
• Windows and signs of damp. Frames, seals, handles: open and close them. Corners near the ceiling, the area behind wardrobes, window sills, the bathroom ceiling, tile joints. Black spots, flaking paint, bubbling wallpaper. Video cannot carry smell, so ask about it directly. Fresh paint on just one patch of wall is a reason to ask what was there before (our assessment).
• Heating and hot water. Radiators and valves, the type of heating (district, gas, electric), how water is heated: boiler or the network. Ask to see the boiler or heater and ask how the flat was heated last winter: between seasons the radiators may be cold.
• Meters. Where the water, electricity, gas and heat meters are, and their current readings in close-up. You will need them for the handover protocol.
• Electrics and sockets. The fuse box, how many sockets in each room and in the kitchen, whether the lights, hob and oven work.
• Internet. Where the router or the cable or fibre socket is, and whether there is already a contract with a provider. Show your own phone screen on the call: is there signal inside the flat?
• Appliances and furniture. Washing machine, fridge, cooker: model, switch on, look for leaks and rust. Treat anything you did not see as not included in the rent.
• View and balcony. Courtyard, street, neighbouring buildings: it shows where the windows face.

Everything you notice is useful at handover. Before the flat is handed over, the parties draw up a protocol describing the technical condition of the installations and equipment, and it is the basis for settlements when the flat is returned (art. 6c u.o.p.l.). The law also divides repair duties between landlord and tenant (art. 6a and 6b u.o.p.l.), unless the agreement provides otherwise (art. 6f u.o.p.l., for flats outside the public housing stock), so check what your agreement says. It is better to write defects down before move-in than to argue about them when you leave. More on the protocol: Protokół zdawczo-odbiorczy.

Want someone to run the viewing and ask the questions for you? How we do it is described in the last section. The flat-finding form is on the page for tenants; the fee is 70% of one month’s czynsz najmu (base rent only, without czynsz administracyjny and utilities), payable after the rental agreement is signed.

What questions should you ask the landlord?

Ask in writing as well, so the answer stays in the message history. Here is a list that is handy to keep in front of you during the call. References to art. 6 and 19a without an act name are to u.o.p.l.; art. 660 is the Civil Code (k.c.).

Question	Why
What is the czynsz najmu (base rent) and by which day is it due?	The base figure. The kaucja (security deposit) is calculated from it: by law at most 12 months of czynsz (art. 6 ust. 1), at most 6 for najem okazjonalny (art. 19a ust. 4)
What is the czynsz administracyjny (building administration charge) and is it included in the advertised price?	Listings often show it separately
Which media (utilities) are paid on top: water, electricity, gas, heating, waste?	To understand the real monthly total
How are they billed: by meter or as fixed zaliczki (advance payments)? How and when is the rozliczenie (settlement) done?	Winter bills are higher. Ask to see the bills for the last heating season
How much is the kaucja, to which account, and when and on what conditions is it returned?	By law the kaucja is returned within a month of the flat being vacated, after deducting any rent-related debts (art. 6 ust. 4)
Will the landlord agree to your meldunek (address registration)?	If you are not an EU citizen and stay more than 30 days, you must register no later than the 4th day after arrival (art. 41 ust. 3, art. 42 ust. 2 of the Population Register Act, u.e.l.); EU, EFTA and Swiss citizens have until day 30 (art. 41 ust. 1). On the paper form your stay must be confirmed by the owner or another person with a legal title to the flat (art. 28 ust. 2 with art. 40 ust. 1). A non-EU citizen without a PESEL must also come to the urząd (office) in person (art. 40 ust. 3, since 1 January 2026)
What type of agreement: ordinary najem or najem okazjonalny?	Okazjonalny is possible only if the owner is a private individual who does not let flats as a business (art. 19a ust. 1), and it requires a notarial deed from the tenant. More: Najem okazjonalny
For how long is the agreement and how can it be ended?	A lease longer than a year must be in writing, otherwise it is treated as concluded for an indefinite period (art. 660 k.c.)
Is there internet, with which provider, and in whose name is the contract? Can you bring your own?	To know whether you will be online from the first days and what it costs
Who lives in the flat now and when will it be free?	It affects your move-in date and whether filming is possible
Are you the owner or a representative? Which documents can you show?	See the section below and the article on the order of payments before arrival

What will a video not show you?

• Noise. The street, trams, neighbours, whether nights are quiet: you cannot judge these over a video link, because the sound is compressed and apps suppress background noise. Ask about neighbours and noise sources, look at the map and street view, and check on the spot.
• Temperature, draughts, smells. How the wind comes through the windows and how water pressure holds at different times of day can only be felt in the flat.
• Damp behind furniture and under coverings. A video shows what is exposed.
• The address and the right to let. Video confirms neither that this is the flat from the listing nor that the person on camera may let it. They may be a tenant sub-letting, which is not allowed without the landlord’s (wynajmujący) consent (art. 688² k.c.). The police also advise checking documents that confirm ownership (KMP w Radomiu, mazowiecka.policja.gov.pl, 29 November 2024). A księga wieczysta number can be checked free of charge at ekw.ms.gov.pl, and How to read a księga wieczysta explains the extract. The order of checking the landlord and paying is covered in Checking the landlord and paying before you arrive.

For whatever you could not check on video, agree to inspect it at move-in: take photos, write defects into the protocol and only then accept the keys. This is common practice (our assessment), not a guarantee: a flat you have not seen in person still carries risk.

How do you record the landlord’s answers?

1. Send the results of the call as a message. For example: “Confirming after our call: czynsz najmu … zł, czynsz administracyjny … zł, utilities by meter, kaucja … zł, term … months.” Ask them to reply “yes” in the same channel. It does not replace the agreement, but it removes misunderstandings (our assessment).
2. Ask for the draft agreement in advance and compare it with the answers: every figure from the call should be in the text. If the agreement says something different from the chat, it is the signed text that will be looked at in a dispute, so correct it before signing (our assessment).
3. Check the form of the agreement. Over a year it must be in writing (art. 660 k.c.). It can be signed remotely: by exchanging copies each signed by hand (art. 78 § 1 k.c.) or with a qualified electronic signature (art. 78¹ § 1–2 k.c.). Details: Can you sign a Polish rental agreement online or by courier.
4. Attach the material to the protocol. Screenshots from the call, photos of meters, pictures of defects: to the protocol drawn up before the flat is handed over (art. 6c u.o.p.l.).
5. Recording the call only with the consent of the participants (see the answer in the FAQ).

How do we run an online viewing?

allproperty is an agency that finds flats for tenants. The online viewing is part of the flat-finding service: we run it by video link and in detail. You tell us beforehand what matters to you, and we use your list to ask for the places you need to be shown and to clarify the details with the landlord. We talk to the landlord directly and interpret the conversation orally. The interpretation is not a sworn translation, so for documents at an urząd or a notary a translator has to be arranged separately.

The limits are the ones described above: video cannot show noise and damp, and it does not prove the owner’s rights. The decision is yours; we give you what is visible on camera and the landlord’s answers.

The fee for finding a flat is 70% of one month’s czynsz najmu (base rent only, without czynsz administracyjny and utilities). It is payable after the rental agreement is signed. Example: rent of 3,500 zł means a fee of 2,450 zł. What the service covers and on what terms is written into the brokerage agreement (umowa pośrednictwa), in writing or electronically (art. 180 ust. 3 u.g.n.). By law a copy of the broker’s current OC (civil liability) insurance policy is attached to that agreement (art. 181 ust. 3a u.g.n.): ask any broker for it before you sign.

Want someone to run the viewing and ask the questions for you? Fill in the flat-finding form on the page for tenants: district, budget, dates. The fee is 70% of one month’s czynsz najmu (base rent only, without czynsz administracyjny and utilities), payable after the rental agreement is signed. If you would rather call: +48 666 866 468, info@allproperty.pl.

Sources (checked 7 October 2026)

• Ustawa o ochronie praw lokatorów, mieszkaniowym zasobie gminy i o zmianie Kodeksu cywilnego (Act on the Protection of Tenants’ Rights, u.o.p.l.), consolidated text Dz.U. 2023 item 725: art. 6, 6a, 6b, 6c, 6f, 19a. eli.gov.pl
• Kodeks cywilny (Civil Code), consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 795 (legal status as of 19 May 2026): art. 23, 78, 78¹, 660, 688². eli.gov.pl
• Ustawa o prawie autorskim i prawach pokrewnych (Copyright Act), consolidated text Dz.U. 2025 item 24: art. 81. eli.gov.pl
• Ustawa o ewidencji ludności (Population Register Act, u.e.l.), consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 384: art. 28, 40, 41, 42. eli.gov.pl
• Ustawa o gospodarce nieruchomościami (Real Estate Management Act, u.g.n.), consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 399: art. 180 ust. 3, art. 181 ust. 3 and 3a. api.sejm.gov.pl
• Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR): art. 2(2)(c), art. 6(1). eur-lex.europa.eu
• Police: Katowice, 29 March 2025 and KMP w Radomiu (mazowiecka.policja.gov.pl), 29 November 2024: warnings about rental scams.
• “Our assessment” marks a practical conclusion of ours, not a rule of law.