Editorial update: · Richter Immobilien-Transaktionen
A well-managed tenant change connects the outgoing tenancy with a realistic plan for the next one. Establish when the property will actually be available, what needs doing and when you can reliably offer possession to a new tenant. This guide applies German law, including to properties in North Rhine-Westphalia.
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Establish when the existing tenancy really ends
Start with the contract that already exists. Identify every tenant and landlord, read amendments and check what notice or agreement has actually been received. A casual message about moving out is useful information, but it is not a sound basis for promising a new household possession. Keep the notice, evidence of receipt, original inventory and relevant agreements together so that everyone involved works from the same facts.
Under section 568 of the German Civil Code, termination of a residential tenancy requires written form. An ordinary email or messaging-app text does not satisfy that requirement. For an ordinary tenant's notice, the basic rule is receipt by the third working day of a month for termination at the end of the month after next. Check the actual receipt date and any relevant contractual restrictions or special termination rights. Adding three months to the day a message was sent can produce the wrong answer.
A landlord's termination needs a separate assessment. The prospect of charging a higher rent to someone else does not provide a valid reason: section 573 BGB excludes termination for the purpose of increasing rent. Disputed notices, restrictions on termination and uncertainty about multiple contracting parties call for a lawyer with German tenancy expertise. A marketing schedule cannot settle an unresolved legal end date.
If the necessary parties agree an earlier end, document the date, return arrangements, agreed payments and outstanding matters clearly. Early key return and the contractual end are not automatically identical. Nor does proposing a replacement tenant by itself release the existing tenant. A clear agreement makes it possible to plan without relying on assumptions about what somebody intended.
Build the timetable around a usable property
Work backwards from the condition promised to the new tenant. Your schedule should cover an agreed preliminary inspection, final return, assessment, necessary works, cleaning and a completion check. Give each step an owner and mark dates as provisional or confirmed. A decorator's availability is not enough if a damp wall first needs investigation. Dependencies matter more than filling every calendar slot.
A preliminary visit a few weeks before departure can reveal likely work, provided access is agreed with the occupant. It does not replace the final return inspection. Furniture may conceal wall damage and rugs may hide flooring. Record which areas remain inaccessible and ask about storage rooms, equipment and fixtures whose future is undecided. This turns a vague refurbishment allowance into a list of specific uncertainties to resolve.
Consider an illustrative German letting: return is agreed for 30 November, minor works and cleaning follow, and the new tenancy is intended to begin on 15 December. That interval is a planning choice, not a statutory waiting period. With monthly net basic rent of EUR 900, half a month represents roughly EUR 450 in forgone basic rent, before any continuing owner costs. This simplified calculation supports a decision; it is not a contractual daily-rent calculation.
Compare that allowance with the consequences of an overoptimistic start: rescheduling, extra coordination and inability to provide the promised condition. A close succession can work when the property and availability are sufficiently certain. Unknown condition or substantial repairs justify more room in the schedule. Tell applicants which facts are confirmed and do not present a hoped-for completion date as an unconditional commitment.
Record the return room by room
Prepare a return record with the address, date, participants, rooms, ancillary spaces and key categories. Take the original inventory with you. Walk through the flat systematically and describe observations precisely, such as a crack in one identified bathroom tile rather than a generally damaged bathroom. Photographs should be attributable to the relevant room and should avoid unnecessary images of personal possessions, correspondence or other private material.
Check accessible doors, windows, taps and included equipment to a reasonable extent. A handover appointment is not a technical survey and cannot establish the absence of hidden defects. Note anything you could not test. Damp, electrical concerns and unexplained safety issues require the appropriate specialist. Recording an observation does not mean that either party has already accepted a particular cause, liability or repair bill.
Write down meter identifiers, readings and the reading date, with clear photographs where useful. Arrange any necessary intermediate reading with the property manager or metering service in advance. Section 9b of the German Heating Costs Ordinance addresses allocation when occupants change. Heating costs are not necessarily divisible simply by occupied months. A resident's individual electricity supply contract is also distinct from the landlord's operating-cost accounting.
Count apartment, building, cellar, mailbox and other keys by category. List missing keys and items left behind rather than relying on an overall total. The return required by section 546 BGB should be understandable later from the records. Read any preprinted waiver or full-settlement wording before signing. Where views differ, record the disagreement; do not pressure someone into accepting the other party's version. Give both sides a copy.
Separate wear, damage and owner improvements
Classify your findings before ordering work. The three useful categories are ordinary contractual wear, potentially compensable damage and improvements you choose for the next letting. Each has different consequences for funding and evidence. An old surface may need replacement without the outgoing tenant being responsible for its cost. Section 538 BGB states that the tenant is not responsible for deterioration resulting from use in accordance with the contract.
For redecoration, examine the actual contractual provision, its validity, the original condition and the need for work. Moving out does not itself create a universal duty to repaint every wall. Equally, an answer about a decorating clause does not automatically establish liability for a specific damaged fitting. If costs are disputed, obtain an assessment before entering the amount as an established deduction from the deposit.
Where a potential damage claim exists, record the condition before repair where it is safe to do so. Keep earlier photographs, relevant installation invoices and a clear contractor's description of the proposed work. Urgent protective action should not be delayed merely to complete a photographic checklist. Ask whether the particular claim requires a prior request to perform work or a deadline. Different claims cannot safely be managed through a single generic demand letter.
Timing deserves its own diary entry. Under section 548 BGB, the landlord's compensation claims for changes to or deterioration of the rented property generally have a six-month limitation period starting when the property is recovered. This is neither the limitation rule for every conceivable claim nor an automatic deposit repayment deadline. If there is a dispute, obtain legal advice promptly about steps that actually preserve the relevant rights.
Close the old accounts without mixing deposits
Keep a closing statement for the outgoing tenancy. It should distinguish rent payments, any properly assessed claims, the deposit and its attributable interest, and the status of operating-cost accounts. Create a separate allocation for the new tenancy. Do not use the incoming deposit as the money for repaying the departing tenant. A contractor's invoice does not turn protected deposit money into the landlord's freely available cash.
Section 551 BGB generally limits an agreed residential tenancy security to three monthly rents excluding separately stated operating costs. A cash deposit can be paid in three equal monthly instalments, with the first due when the tenancy begins. Deposit funds must be invested separately from the landlord's assets. At an illustrative net basic rent of EUR 900, the maximum is EUR 2,700, with three instalments of EUR 900. Owners do not have to choose the maximum in every contract.
Account for the outgoing deposit after assessing the claims it secures. Explain individual amounts and assess any limited retention for unresolved claims specifically. Neither indefinite retention of the whole deposit without justification nor compulsory full repayment at every handover is an accurate general rule. Questions about payment becoming due, disputed deductions or set-off should be resolved on the actual facts with appropriate legal advice.
Operating-cost advances are generally accounted for annually. Section 556(3) BGB requires the statement to be communicated no later than twelve months after the accounting period ends; moving out does not impose a general duty to issue an immediate partial statement. Obtain a forwarding address and record occupation periods carefully. Meter readings support allocation but do not replace the accounts or the agreed allocation method.
Prepare a credible offer for the next letting
Decide which tasks must be completed before occupation and which optional improvements are worthwhile. Prioritise the condition needed for contractual use and relevant defects. In contractor instructions, separate repairs, cleaning and enhancements. Specify the work, materials, responsible person and completion date. An instruction merely to make a flat ready to let leaves too much room for different expectations about quality and cost.
Check finished work before taking new photographs. Update outdated descriptions of equipment and availability. If the kitchen is included, establish which appliances belong to the letting and their condition. Any private sale of possessions between the two tenants needs separate clarification. It should not quietly alter what you have promised in the new tenancy. Keep the marketing description, inventory and contract consistent with one another.
Set the proposed rent by reference to the particular property and current law. In designated areas, section 556d BGB generally limits the initial rent to the local comparable rent plus ten per cent. Check the current NRW area designation, any applicable special provisions and required precontractual information. A change of tenant or fresh paint does not by itself permit any rent the market might accept. Our guide to calculating the rent develops this decision.
Arrange viewing windows with the existing occupier where necessary. Ownership does not create unrestricted access while another person has possession. Show the actual condition and explain specifically which works are firmly planned. The guide to apartment viewings for landlords helps you organise appointments and information so that applicants can make an informed decision afterwards.
Select an applicant and settle the contract details
Decide on relevant selection criteria before applications arrive: intended start, agreed use, suitable occupancy and ability to meet the rent. Apply the same criteria consistently. Vacancy pressure is no reason to collect excessive personal data or make arbitrary choices. Our guide to finding suitable tenants covers the wider selection process. For a tenant change, the essential additional question is whether the applicant's timetable matches the property's actual readiness.
The German data protection authorities' January 2026 guidance distinguishes three stages. Viewings normally require necessary identification and organisational information, not routine salary and credit documentation from every visitor. Once someone expresses a concrete intention to rent the property, proportionate questions about proposed occupation and financial circumstances may become relevant. Necessity remains the test; greater interest does not remove privacy protections.
Necessary supporting evidence is considered for the first-choice applicant shortly before the contract is concluded. Do not demand an entire credit agency data-access copy under Article 15 GDPR or unnecessary duplicate proof. Irrelevant information should be redacted. A certificate of no rent arrears or access to a previous landlord should not become a compulsory application barrier. Delete information when its purpose ends unless a specific continuing legal basis justifies retention.
Before signing, reconcile names and contracting parties, commencement, rent, operating costs, security, ancillary rooms and included equipment. Any unfinished works need clear agreement rather than an incidental viewing comment. Do not promise an earlier usable condition than reasonable planning supports. Have unusual contractual arrangements checked by an appropriately qualified adviser instead of assembling incompatible clauses from several templates under time pressure.
Treat the new move-in as a separate handover
Prepare a new handover record for the incoming tenant. Do not copy old readings unchanged: works may have consumed electricity or water, and the property's condition may have changed. Recheck rooms, included equipment and keys. Describe any remaining task with a responsible person and an agreed date. This gives the new tenancy its own documented starting point and avoids passing disputed assumptions from one household to another.
Explain the practical matters needed from the first day: operating instructions, access to storage, how to report defects and agreed payment arrangements. Check amounts actually due at that stage without defeating the statutory cash-deposit instalment right through a blanket demand for the full amount. Arrange the landlord's confirmation of actual move-in, the German Wohnungsgeberbestätigung, under section 19 of the Federal Registration Act. The tenancy agreement itself is not a substitute for that confirmation.
Close the organisational process with a short list of outstanding items, owners and review dates. Work may be complete while the old operating-cost statement remains pending. Conversely, a disputed deposit amount should not muddle the new tenancy's records. Keep relevant evidence in a structured location with access limited to those who need it. Distinguish completed tasks from continuing accounting obligations so that neither gets lost.
If you want to coordinate return, preparation and marketing, describe your planned tenant change through the landlord enquiry form. Useful details include the location, approximate floor area, expected tenancy end, known work and preferred timeframe. They make it easier to discuss the support actually required. Disputed termination or financial claims belong with German tenancy legal advisers, while technical causes belong with the appropriate trades. Clear responsibility makes the transition more dependable for the owner and both households.
