Nebenkosten sind oft hoch.

Utility costs are often high.

Breakdown of Nebenkosten sind oft hoch.

• sein: to be
• oft: often
• hoch: high
• die Nebenkosten: the utility costs

Questions & Answers about Nebenkosten sind oft hoch.

Why is there no article before Nebenkosten?

In German, when you make a general statement about a plural noun as a whole, you can omit the article. Here Nebenkosten stands for “all additional costs in general.” If you want to talk about specific costs you’ve already mentioned, you could add the definite article:
• Die Nebenkosten sind oft hoch.

Can I add Die and say Die Nebenkosten sind oft hoch?

Yes. That simply shifts your focus from a general rule to particular costs you and your listener know about. Both are correct:
• Nebenkosten sind oft hoch. (in general)
• Die Nebenkosten sind oft hoch. (these specific costs)

Why do we use sind and not ist?

Nebenkosten is grammatically plural (Kosten = costs), so it takes the third-person plural form of sein, which is sind. If you had a singular noun, you’d use ist (e.g., Der Preis ist hoch.).

Is Nebenkosten always plural?

Yes. The word Kosten (and its compound Nebenkosten) exists only in the plural form in German. You never say Nebenkoste or eine Nebenkosten.

Why isn’t hoch inflected here? Shouldn’t it be hohe?

After a linking verb like sein, adjectives are used predicatively and remain uninflected. You only add endings when the adjective is attributive (directly before a noun). Compare:
• Predicative: Die Nebenkosten sind hoch.
• Attributive: hohe Nebenkosten (e.g., hohe Nebenkosten belasten viele Mieter).

Why is oft placed after sind and before hoch?

In a simple German main clause, the finite verb occupies the second position (V2). Frequency adverbs like oft typically follow that verb. The order here is Subject – Verb – Adverb – Predicate:
• Nebenkosten (S) sind (V) oft (Adv) hoch (P).

Can I move oft to the front for emphasis?

Yes. If you start with oft, the verb must still be in second position, so the subject follows it:
• Oft sind Nebenkosten hoch.
This puts a bit more emphasis on how frequently the costs are high.

Can I replace hoch with teuer?

You could say Nebenkosten sind oft teuer, because teuer also means “expensive.” However, Germans usually talk about costs being “high” (hoch) when referring to an amount or level, and teuer when something has a high price as a product or service. Both are understandable, but hoch is idiomatic with Kosten.