250,000 euros fine for shoes in the stairwell?
Munich lawyer explains the strangest tenant judgments
Created: 01/04/2023 05:00
By: Andreas Thieme
Be careful, this can get expensive!
If tenants leave their shoes in front of their apartment door or in the hallway, they can even be sentenced to remove the items - alternatively, there is a fine of up to 250,000 euros.
A Munich lawyer explains the ten strangest tenant judgments.
Munich - More than a million tenants live in the state capital.
They are often not even aware of the bizarre rules that surround their everyday lives - and where legal dangers lurk.
About horrendous fees for shoes in the stairwell or apartments.
which the landlord cools down ice cold.
Attorney Alexander Walther deals with such cases on a daily basis.
For our editorial team, the lawyer presents the ten most common legal questions and the most bizarre cases.
1) Are tenants allowed to leave shoes in the stairwell?
No!
Irrespective of any provisions in the rental agreement, no objects of any kind may be placed in the stairwell.
This ban is necessary both for reasons of fire protection and to avoid obstructing escape and rescue routes.
If the landlord violates this and leaves his shoes or other objects in the stairwell, he can not only be sentenced to remove these objects, but also under threat of a fine of up to 250,000 euros, alternatively imprisonment for up to six months in order to do so in the future refrain
2) Does it justify termination without notice if the tenant describes the landlord in a letter as "borderless" and ends the letter with the closing formula "I hope lightning strikes you"?
Yes!
According to a decision by the district court in Munich this summer, both the insult and the threat (“Hopefully lightning strikes you”) justify dismissal without notice.
A prior warning is not required for such serious violations of honor.
3) Can the landlord adjust the tenant's ancillary cost advance payments to the increased gas prices?
If the landlord has not yet made any adjustments based on the last utility bill: yes!
Because paragraph 560, paragraph 4 of the German Civil Code grants the landlord a right to make adjustments, in which the increased energy prices may also be taken into account.
This was decided by the Federal Court of Justice in 2011.
On the other hand, it is disputed whether the landlord may carry out a further adjustment after the adjustment has been made due to the increased energy costs.
4) Can the tenant feed songbirds on their balcony?
The jurisprudence is not unanimous here.
One view allows songbirds to be fed even if this creates dirt and also attracts pigeons.
The other view sees no contractual use of the rented property in feeding birds on one's own balcony.
In the light of Article 20a of the Basic Law (state objective of environmental protection), the first view is likely to be preferable and more in keeping with the spirit of the times.
5) Can the landlord lower the minimum temperature in the apartment?
Even with the currently extremely high energy costs, the landlord is not allowed to cool down the apartment indefinitely.
The question is what minimum temperature must be reached.
A drop below 20 degrees is not permitted.
Sometimes it is also argued that at least 22 degrees or even 23 degrees must be achieved.
The same applies in business premises and in particular offices if the activity is mainly carried out while sitting.
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6) Can owners' meetings be called before 6 p.m. on weekdays?
The District Court of Munich I has decided that, at least in small condominium communities, it is not permissible to schedule the owners' meeting before 6 p.m. if the administrator is aware that individual owners are unable to attend due to their professional activity.
All resolutions passed can therefore be contested if the special owner can demonstrate that he was unable to attend the owners' meeting due to the early termination.
7) If craftsmen are to carry out larger orders in a homeowners' association, the administration must obtain at least three comparative offers - does this also apply to the commissioning of an expert?
Yes!
The district court of Munich ruled in March of this year that at least three comparative offers must be obtained before an expert can be commissioned.
If this is not the case, the resolution that has been passed is contestable, since the owners lack a sufficient basis for a proper decision-making process.
8) Can the tenant reduce the rent if scaffolding is erected in his garden to paint the facade of the house?
If the scaffolding is erected for a longer period of time and this affects the use of the garden, the tenant has the right to a reduction.
However, case law only assumes a reduction rate of ten to 15 percent, even if the impairment lasts for months.
9) Does the property manager have to send the minutes of the owners' meeting to the individual owners?
No!
It is a common misconception that the owners have a right to receive the log.
The administrator is only obliged to keep a collection of resolutions and to allow the owner to inspect them.
If necessary, he must also provide copying facilities.
If the manager refuses to inspect the property, the special owner can enforce this by way of an injunction, provided that he has set a deadline for the manager and the inspection is urgent.
For example, because appeal periods are running.
This was decided by the district court of Munich this year.
The WEG then has to bear the costs of the preliminary injunction proceedings.
10) Does the rental price brake also apply to new rentals after extensive modernization?
No!
The rental price brake does not apply to first-time rentals after extensive modernization.
The prerequisite for this, however, is that the modernization costs reach a third of the value of the necessary construction costs for a comparable new apartment.
Furthermore, the modernization must also have a qualitative effect on the entire apartment.
If this is the case, the rent can also be more than ten percent above the local rent, since paragraphs 556d, 556e of the German Civil Code do not apply.