What you can do as a tenant against a termination for personal use

What counts as a reason for personal use?

In the termination letter the landlord must name the person who is to move in and give a detailed, verifiable reason why that person needs the flat. This is the ground for termination that is meant to justify your having to leave. The landlord may add detail to this reason later, but may not simply swap it and turn a niece into a mother-in-law.

Blanket statements (for example that the landlord urgently needs the flat or that it is bigger) are not enough. If the termination ends up in court, the landlord must prove the reasons in detail.

Possible reasons for a termination for personal use:

• The flat is closer to the landlord's workplace
• The landlord needs the flat because of a divorce or because they have to move out of their own home
• Relatives need a flat (starting a family, etc.)
• A carer is to move into the flat with the landlord

Which deadlines apply to a termination for personal use?

Unlike a termination without notice, a termination for personal use involves several deadlines:

1. The notice periods depend on how long you have lived in the flat and are staggered as follows:
   Tenancy of up to 5 years: 3 months
   Tenancy of 5 to 8 years: 6 months
   Tenancy of over 8 years*: 9 months
   * If the tenancy agreement was signed before 1 September 2001 and contains the staggered notice periods that applied at the time, the notice period may be 12 months.
2. The objection deadline follows from the notice period. If you want to object to the termination, you must do so no later than two months before the announced end of the notice period.
3. After a flat has been bought, a termination for personal use is only possible once a blocking period (Kündigungssperrfrist) has expired. If the flat was converted into a condominium during your tenancy, the new landlord may only terminate for personal use after at least three years. In areas with a tight housing market (large cities), the blocking period can be extended to up to 10 years.

How do you object to a termination for personal use?

Every tenant has the right to object to a termination for personal use. The objection must reach the landlord no later than two months before the end of the notice period. In the objection you can rely on § 574 BGB, the so-called hardship clause or social clause. It says that the termination cannot reasonably be expected of you for social reasons. Such reasons include:

• Old age combined with illness or need for care
• Serious professional disadvantages caused by a move
• A long tenancy and deep roots in the neighbourhood
• Suitable replacement housing cannot be found on reasonable terms

Whether a hardship case exists always depends on the individual case and is decided by the judge hearing it. In principle, hardship outweighs the landlord's interests. In practice, however, many hardship cases are unfortunately not upheld.

If the landlord owns other comparable flats, in some cases they must offer you a suitable alternative flat.

An objection must always be in writing and give detailed reasons. It can lead to court proceedings and an eviction action. Affected tenants should therefore always get tenancy-law support from an experienced lawyer. The tenancy continues while the objection is pending.

Termination agreements and compensation payments

If, despite every effort, you cannot keep your flat, a termination agreement (Aufhebungsvertrag) may still get you some form of compensation. If you move out before the notice period ends, or if the landlord wants to cut short a lawsuit or objection procedure that is already under way, the landlord may pay you a settlement.

Sham personal use and damages

If a landlord only pretended to need the flat in order to get you out, they are acting unlawfully – but only if it can be proven. If you can show that the landlord, or the person who was supposed to move in, never did, you can claim damages and take the matter to court. In such a case the landlord may also be committing a criminal offence, and the termination is not valid.

The burden of proving the deception lies with you as the tenant. Even evidence gathered by a private detective can be used. If sham personal use is proven, you are entitled to compensation that can cover removal costs, estate agent fees and the difference between your old and new rent.

What can you do as a tenant against a termination for personal use?

If your landlord has claimed your flat for personal use, that is an existential burden – and for more and more tenants a bitter reality. In many large cities such as Berlin, termination for personal use is now one of the most common grounds for termination, and long-standing tenants are not spared. Often these terminations go unanswered, and the tenant can do nothing once the landlord simply re-lets the flat at a higher rent or sells it.

Do you not want to move out, or cannot move out, or do you doubt your landlord's reasons? Then check your chances of objecting or claiming damages. You are entitled to damages if, after the termination, the landlord did not move into the flat and only faked the need.

• Keep calm after the first shock: legal expenses insurance for tenancy matters helps you fight a termination for personal use.
• Act together: inform your tenants' association or join one, and tell your neighbours and those around you about the termination.
• Gain time: lodge your objection only shortly before the objection deadline expires.
• Clarify ownership: at the land registry you can check whether the landlord owns other flats or houses where a suitable alternative flat could be offered.

Checklist for tenants: reviewing a termination for personal use

• Is the termination legally valid at all?
• Has the personal use been explained in detail?
• Was the termination sent in writing to every tenant named in the agreement?
• Have all landlords signed the termination?
• Is the person moving in named, with their exact family relationship?
• Are the reasons for the personal use verifiable?
• Does the termination letter point out your statutory right to object?
• Have the statutory notice periods been observed?

Frequently asked questions about termination for personal use