Apartment viewings in Germany: a landlord’s guide

Separate the right of access from the task of finding a new tenant

An occupied apartment is the residents’ private home. Ownership does not allow the landlord to enter whenever convenient. Specific circumstances can justify a visit, such as examining a reported defect or organising a genuinely planned sale or new letting. The reason determines the preparation required and the appropriate extent of the appointment. It should be clear before anyone is invited to attend.

In its judgment of 4 June 2014, VIII ZR 289/13, the German Federal Court of Justice rejected a general right to inspect without a specific reason. Access requires a concrete legitimate basis and appropriate advance notice. A broad standard clause allowing arbitrary checks is not a reliable foundation. If the particular entitlement is disputed, obtain legal advice rather than attempting to enforce access yourself.

A new letting introduces an additional organisational task. Prospective tenants need to assess the apartment while current residents should not face unnecessary disruption. First establish whether the existing tenancy is actually ending and when the property will be available. A tenant’s informal thought about moving is not a confirmed handover date that should already be advertised as certain.

Record the purpose, participants and areas required for the visit. Investigating moisture in a bathroom is different from showing every room to prospective tenants. A precise explanation helps residents understand the request and prevents extra people or unrelated tasks appearing unexpectedly. This distinction makes both the legal position and the practical organisation easier to assess.

Agree the purpose, participants and timing in advance

Offer specific time windows and explain why access is needed. State the expected duration and who will attend. Clear information makes it easier to find a workable appointment. A vague announcement that someone will arrive during the afternoon leaves too much uncertainty and increases the risk of a conflict that could have been avoided through ordinary coordination.

Consider justified personal circumstances such as work, illness or caring responsibilities. This does not automatically mean every legitimate visit can be prevented indefinitely, but the actual balance matters. There is no universal number of days’ notice or visits per week that is always lawful regardless of context. Do not treat a common internet rule of thumb as a fixed legal entitlement.

Where several prospective tenants are involved, grouped appointments may be practical if their scale and organisation are reasonably agreed. An unexpectedly large group is not a substitute for planning. Use manageable numbers and clear time slots. Establish whether the resident or an expressly authorised representative will accompany the visit, and make sure everyone understands the arrangement.

If agreement proves difficult, keep a factual record of proposals and responses. Consider whether another time or a narrower scope would solve the problem. A fundamental dispute may need legal assessment. Possession of a spare key does not justify entering an occupied home without the necessary authority. Keep ordinary scheduled viewings distinct from genuinely urgent situations requiring their own assessment.

Protect privacy when viewing or photographing an occupied home

A viewing does not automatically authorise every kind of recording. Clarify beforehand whether photographs are intended, what they will show and how they will be used. Images for a public advertisement can reveal family photographs, documents or private possessions. The basis for taking and publishing them needs to be established for the specific purpose; attendance at an appointment is not a blanket publication permission.

Where possible, use suitable existing plans and factual property information to avoid unnecessary images of occupied rooms. If new photographs are agreed, prepare the appointment together. Private items can be moved out of frame or the angle adjusted. Publish only the necessary images whose use has been properly cleared, and avoid retaining unrelated collections of photographs indefinitely.

Explain the rules to prospective tenants too. Private cupboards, paperwork and personal belongings are not to be opened or photographed at will. Accompany the viewing and answer property questions from the information available. Current residents should not unexpectedly become responsible for a full presentation or for answering questions about their private lives.

After the appointment, keep notes focused on relevant property matters. Observations about possessions or presumed habits do not belong in a general property or applicant file. Respectful handling improves cooperation and helps prevent an otherwise justified viewing from becoming contentious because of unnecessary intrusions. It also keeps the information collected useful for the actual task of preparing the letting.

Prepare the apartment information before booking appointments

The main terms should be clear before viewings are arranged: area, rooms, net basic rent, operating costs, proposed start and known special circumstances. Applicants can then decide whether the property broadly suits them. If the price or availability first changes when they arrive, both they and the current residents may have spent time on an appointment that could have been avoided.

Check that plans and area statements match the property as it stands. Have information about heating, the energy certificate, included equipment and ancillary areas ready. Follow the current building-energy rules on presenting the certificate. The purpose is to enable a realistic assessment, so known restrictions should not become visible only after unusually persistent questioning.

In an empty apartment, cleaning, lighting and clear routes can make inspection easier. Identify outstanding repairs and the condition that will actually be provided at handover. Do not promise new features before the instruction, timing and scope are established. A short written list of planned work helps keep statements consistent across different appointments and prevents an informal suggestion being mistaken for a firm commitment.

Plan a route through living rooms, kitchen and bathroom, balcony or terrace, cellar and any other included areas. Keep a list of common questions and supported answers. Our guide to letting an apartment places this preparation in the wider process. A viewing should be a useful decision stage, not the first occasion on which the landlord discovers important information is missing.

Conduct the viewing with factual answers and clear follow-up

Begin with the important terms, then allow people time to understand the space. Applicants need practical information: where laundry facilities and bicycles go, which rooms lead through others and how access to ancillary areas works. Specific explanations are more useful than repeatedly calling the apartment ideal. Different households can reasonably assess the same features differently.

Explain relevant limitations openly. Stairs, storage restrictions or noise from neighbouring uses may affect suitability. Avoid unsupported assurances such as completely silent or no additional costs. If an answer is not known, record the question and follow up with verified information. That creates a more reliable basis for continued interest than a spontaneous guess made to keep the conversation moving.

Give applicants the same essential information. An updated question log helps prevent later visitors receiving different commitments from earlier ones. If a statement changes, communicate the correction to people with concrete interest who relied on the earlier version. Comparable information is necessary for a sensible next stage and reduces disputes about what was promised during the viewing.

Finish by explaining the next step. State how and by when concrete interest can be expressed and how selection will proceed. This is different from promising a tenancy immediately. Avoid artificial pressure and allow people to decide using the information actually available. A reasonable, clearly communicated response process helps organise the applications without turning the appointment into a race to submit private documents.

Collect applicant information at the appropriate stage

The Data Protection Conference’s January 2026 guidance distinguishes phases of the letting process. For an initial viewing, necessary contact and organisational details are the starting point. Requiring a comprehensive financial questionnaire with supporting evidence from every person requesting an appointment is not an appropriate general standard. The information must be necessary for the purpose at that point in the process.

Once there is concrete interest, further details relevant to the proposed tenancy may be needed. Appropriate supporting evidence comes later when a candidate is being selected for the agreement. Do not routinely demand a complete data-access disclosure from a credit agency. Such a document can contain far more information than is necessary to assess ability to meet the rent; a suitably limited creditworthiness document is a different matter.

Questions about religion, ethnic origin, pregnancy plans or tenants’ association membership do not belong in a routine selection form. General consent does not automatically legitimise unnecessary collection. Define relevant criteria beforehand and examine only the information lawfully required to apply them. This produces a fairer process and a more manageable file than collecting everything that an applicant might be willing to send.

Control access and deletion as well. Application papers should not circulate through open folders or informal group chats. When their purpose ends, handle deletion according to the applicable requirements rather than retaining an unlimited reserve of personal records. Our guide to finding tenants explains how appointment organisation and proportionate selection can fit together.

Distinguish a viewing from inspection and final handover

A pre-tenancy viewing helps an applicant decide whether the apartment suits them. The later handover records its condition at a particular time, together with keys, meter readings and provided equipment. An informal tour does not replace that record. Likewise, a preliminary comment about planned works should become a clear agreement before signing if it materially affects the applicant’s decision.

Consider a damaged kitchen worktop that you intend to replace. Establish whether the kitchen is included, what exactly will be replaced and by when. At handover, record the actual result. A vague statement that the kitchen will be made nicer leaves uncertainty about both quality and timing. A specific task with an agreed outcome is easier for both parties to understand.

In an occupied apartment, also distinguish the current residents’ belongings from the landlord’s property. Attractive furniture in photographs may otherwise appear to form part of the offer. Any private transfer between outgoing and incoming tenants should not be presented as a landlord-provided service without clarification. Keep the accommodation offer separate from someone else’s proposal to sell their furniture.

Prepare the handover record separately and adapt it to the apartment. It should contain more than a signature box. The sequence then remains clear: information and selection first, the agreement next, and finally documented delivery in the agreed condition. Each stage has its own purpose and should provide the evidence needed for that purpose.

Assign responsibilities for a well-organised new letting

A useful viewing process combines consideration for residents with reliable information for applicants. Decide who arranges appointments, who shows the property and who answers outstanding questions. With several owners or an appointed agent, make these roles explicit. Clear responsibility prevents duplicate bookings, inconsistent statements and unnecessary collection of the same personal data through several different channels.

Review appointments using relevant facts. Which property questions recur, which details are missing from the listing and why do otherwise suitable applicants withdraw? This feedback can improve presentation. It does not justify intrusive questions about private circumstances. Keep the review focused on the accommodation, contractual start and supportable payment of rent.

If an occupied apartment is involved and access itself is disputed, resolve that legal question before treating it as a simple scheduling problem. A letting enquiry does not replace legal advice on an existing conflict. Where a new tenancy is genuinely planned, preparation, appointments and selection can then be organised as a connected process with an understandable next step for everyone.

For a planned letting in Düsseldorf or NRW, provide the property type, location and intended start through our letting enquiry. Mention whether the apartment is occupied and which availability date is confirmed. This allows the next discussion to focus on the documents and arrangements needed before the first appointments take place.

To connect viewings with the outgoing handover, preparation work and a realistic new tenancy date, use our guide to managing a tenant change.