We moved in during the spring of 2023. The apartment was advertised as being rented for 1 year with the possibility of extension. We understood this as a clear sign that the landlord was probably trying to sublet his apartment illegally. The rental law (lejeloven) states clearly that time-limited rental contracts are only legal if the owner/subletter is traveling abroad for work, study, etc.
Upon visiting the apartment, the landlord quickly admitted that he would be moving in with his girlfriend and that was why the contract was set at 1 year to start. They wanted to make sure that they could get along, or something. We said yes to the apartment, a 2 room, 55 m2 in an older building, for a price of 11,000 dkk per month, plus 1,000 for the aconto.
About 1 week after moving in, we sent the email. We knew that we had a lot of leverage, because the rent was too high, but also because the time-limited contract was illegal. Our message was simple and clear: The rent is too high, as the apartment was not renovated, and we thought a fair price should be 6,000 dkk. After a bit of back and forth, we settled on 8,000 including the aconto and all other utilities. It literally took a matter of minutes and we saved 4,000 dkk per month!