Who Pays for Apartment Repairs in a German Rental

The radiator stays cold in January. The tap drips. A socket cover cracks. Then the property manager forwards an invoice and expects you to pay, or worse, tells you to “just call a tradesperson” yourself. You worry about an angry landlord letter, a voided insurance claim, or losing the flat if you withhold rent the wrong way.

German law starts from a simple rule: the landlord keeps the flat fit for use. Contracts try to shift small repair bills onto you, and courts only allow that under tight limits. This guide covers who pays by default, when a minor repair clause (Kleinreparaturklausel) is valid, how to notify defects, when rent reduction is safe, when you may hire someone yourself, and how to avoid emergency-service rip-offs.

For deposits, notice periods, and rent increases, see Renting in Germany.

Who pays for repairs by default

Under § 535 Abs. 1 BGB, the landlord must maintain the flat in a condition fit for the agreed use for the whole tenancy. That covers preventative maintenance and repairs. Wear and tear from normal use, operational defects, and structural work sit with the landlord unless a valid contract clause says otherwise.

You do not have to “prove you are a good tenant” before reporting a broken heater. You do have to notify properly, keep records, and avoid skipping steps that forfeit later claims.

Checking the minor repair clause

Many standard leases include a Kleinreparaturklausel. It can make you pay for small items you handle every day. If any required limit is missing or drafted illegally, the whole clause is void. Then the landlord pays everything again under § 535 BGB. Courts apply § 307 BGB (unfair standard terms) and long Federal Court of Justice (BGH) case law here.

A valid clause must meet all of these at once:

1. Narrow physical scope. Only parts you touch often and can influence: taps, mixing valves, shower heads, door and window handles, locks, light switches, socket covers, shutter cords, blind mechanisms. Not allowed: in-wall pipes and wiring, gas lines, boilers, radiators as heating units, structural window frames, exterior building parts. Calcification or age-related failure of parts you cannot control also falls outside a proper minor-repair scope.

2. A hard per-repair cap. Older judgments hovered around €75 to €120. With craft prices up, ceilings up to about €150 including VAT and travel are widely accepted. The cap is an all-or-nothing threshold, not a deductible. If the bill is €110 and the cap is €120, you pay €110. If the bill is €121, you pay €0 and the landlord pays the full €121. Clauses that make you “contribute up to €120” toward bigger bills are illegal and void the clause.

3. An annual cumulative cap. Usually 6% to 8% of annual cold rent, or a fixed sum often around €200 to €300 per calendar year. No annual cap in the contract means you owe nothing under the clause.

4. Money only, not management. The clause can make you pay for a qualifying repair. It cannot force you to find, hire, or supervise the tradesperson. “Tenant must commission a repair person for minor defects” language voids the clause.

Pull the clause out of your lease and check those four points before you pay a “minor repair” invoice.

How to report a defect

Before rent reduction or self-remedy, you need a defect notice (Mängelanzeige) under § 536c BGB. Tell the landlord or property manager as soon as you notice the problem.

Send it in writing with proof of delivery: registered drop-off mail (Einwurfeinschreiben) or email you can document. Describe the defect in concrete terms (“living-room radiator stays cold on full; room is 14°C”), attach photos or temperature logs, and set a calendar deadline. Typical defects: 10 to 14 days. Emergencies such as no heat in deep winter or a major leak: 24 to 48 hours.

Skip the notice and you can lose the right to reduce rent retroactively. You can also face damage claims if delay causes secondary damage (for example mould after a long unreported leak).

Rent reduction without risking eviction

If a defect seriously cuts use of the flat, rent drops by law for as long as the defect lasts (§ 536 BGB). You do not need a court order first. The percentage is measured against gross warm rent (cold rent plus heating and operating-cost advances).

Cutting rent on your own is where people get hurt. If underpayment builds past roughly two months’ base rent, the landlord may try extraordinary termination under § 543 Abs. 2 BGB. Safer move: send the defect notice, keep paying the full amount under express reservation of rights, then reclaim or set off overpaid rent once the defect period and percentage are clear.

Courts use ranges, not fixed tariffs. Examples of how severity has been treated:

Join a local tenants’ association (Mieterverein) before you fight percentages alone. A wrong cut that looks like arrears is more expensive than a membership fee.

When you can hire someone yourself

You generally cannot call a tradesperson, pay the bill, and invoice the landlord on day one. Self-remedy (Ersatzvornahme) under § 536a Abs. 2 BGB is allowed only when:

1. Landlord default. You sent a proper notice with a reasonable deadline, and nothing useful happened by that date.
2. True emergency. Immediate action is needed to stop serious damage or health risk, and the landlord or manager cannot be reached (burst pipe at 2 a.m., total heat failure in sub-zero weather on a weekend).

Then you may hire a qualified firm and demand reimbursement or offset against rent (§ 539 BGB). Keep the notice, the deadline, photos, and the invoice.

Cost estimates, electric stoves, and emergency callouts

Cost estimate vs binding offer. A cost estimate (Kostenvoranschlag) is normally non-binding and free unless you agreed a fee in advance (§ 632 Abs. 3 BGB). Small-print fees for estimates are often invalid. Overruns of about 15–20% can still be acceptable; beyond that the firm must warn you, and you may terminate under § 649 BGB and pay only for work already done. A written fixed-price offer without “non-binding” wording is binding once accepted: the contractor eats calculation mistakes.

400V stove connections. Installing a three-phase electric stove is not DIY. Under § 13 NAV (low-voltage connection ordinance), only a registered electrician may do it. Uncertified work can void building and personal-liability insurance and leave you liable if something burns. When you move into a flat without a fitted kitchen, hire a certified electrician and keep the commissioning certificate.

Emergency services. Lockouts and weekend plumbing attract predatory pricing. Call the landlord, property manager, or the building’s posted emergency number first. If you must call outside help, demand an all-in fixed price on the phone (labour, surcharge, VAT, travel). Refuse cash-only pressure and insist on a detailed invoice for bank transfer. If someone threatens you for payment, call the police on 110.

Sample defect notice

Use your own details. Send to every landlord or manager listed on the lease. Have all primary tenants on the lease sign.

[Your name(s)]
[Flat address, floor / unit]
[Postcode, city]
[Phone / email]

[Landlord or Hausverwaltung]
[Address]
[Postcode, city]

[City], [date]

PER EINWURFEINSCHREIBEN

Mängelanzeige gemäß § 536c BGB, Aufforderung zur Mängelbeseitigung
und Erklärung über die Mietzahlung unter Vorbehalt

Mietobjekt: [full address]
Mietvertrag vom: [lease date]

Sehr geehrte(r) Frau/Herr [name],

hiermit zeige ich Ihnen gemäß § 536c BGB nachfolgende(n) Mangel/Mängel an:

[Concrete description, dates, temperatures, photos attached]

Die vertragsgemäße Nutzung ist erheblich beeinträchtigt. Gemäß § 535 BGB
sind Sie verpflichtet, den Mangel zu beseitigen.

Ich fordere Sie auf, den Mangel bis spätestens zum [deadline date]
vollständig zu beseitigen und mir bis zum [3–5 days] einen Termin
schriftlich oder per E-Mail zu bestätigen.

Erfolgt keine fristgerechte Beseitigung, behalte ich mir vor:
- Selbstvornahme gemäß § 536a Abs. 2 BGB auf Ihre Kosten
- Mietminderung gemäß § 536 BGB

Ab dem [defect start date] zahle ich die Miete UNTER AUSDRÜCKLICHEM
VORBEHALT und behalte mir Rückforderung oder Aufrechnung vor.

Zugang zur Wohnung gewähre ich nach Terminabsprache.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen
[Signatures of all primary tenants]

Keep a copy of what you sent, the delivery proof, and any reply. That paper trail is what protects you when the invoice, the heat failure, or the rent argument arrives later.