{"id":5344,"date":"2018-10-13T12:16:26","date_gmt":"2018-10-13T12:16:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/?p=5344"},"modified":"2025-08-25T13:17:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T13:17:08","slug":"wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/residential-tenancy-abuse-of-rights-in-termination-due-to-personal-need-for-failure-to-offer-a-vacant-alternative-apartment\/","title":{"rendered":"Residential Tenancy: Abuse of Rights in Termination Due to Personal Need for Failure to Offer a Vacant Alternative Apartment"},"content":{"rendered":"

Berlin Regional Court, April 16, 2015, Case No.: 67 S 14\/15<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>According to \u00a7 573 Paragraph 1 of the German Civil Code (BGB), a landlord can only terminate a rental agreement for valid reasons if they have a legitimate interest in ending the tenancy. Termination for the purpose of raising the rent is excluded. A legitimate interest on the part of the landlord particularly exists when the tenant has culpably and significantly breached their contractual obligations, the landlord requires the premises as a residence for themselves, their family members, or members of their household, or if the continuation of the tenancy would prevent the landlord from making reasonable economic use of the property, resulting in significant disadvantages. \u00a7 573 Paragraph 1 No. 2 BGB provides the landlord with the option to terminate the tenancy in cases of personal need.<\/p>\n

In the following ruling, the Berlin District Court clarified that the landlord cannot rely on a termination due to personal need if it violates the principles of good faith. This applies particularly when the landlord fails to offer a vacant alternative apartment, even if the tenant refuses to rent the alternative apartment following a later termination notice. Bad faith can only be dismissed if the tenant had no interest in renting the alternative apartment at any point.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, the court addressed a termination issued later in the proceedings, governed by \u00a7 533 of the German Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO). According to this section, changes to the claim, counterclaims, or set-off declarations are only permissible if the opponent consents or if the court deems them appropriate. They must be based on facts that the appellate court must consider according to \u00a7 529 ZPO.<\/p>\n

Consequently, the appellate court can only take into account a new termination declared in a subsequent first-instance submission allowed under \u00a7 283 ZPO if it is based on the same factual circumstances as a previously introduced termination.<\/p>\n

According to the court, this is not the case if the first termination was based on the creation of a secondary residence, while the subsequent termination in the allowed submission refers to shifting the main residence to the disputed apartment.<\/p>\n

This constitutes a new cause of action, which cannot be considered under \u00a7 529 ZPO.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

<\/span>Introduction: Termination Due to Personal Need<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

In the present case, the dispute concerned the termination of a rental agreement due to personal need. The plaintiffs, who had rented an apartment to the defendants since 1998, terminated the tenancy on November 23, 2012, citing personal need. However, the plaintiffs did not offer the defendants the rental of a vacant apartment below, leading to legal disputes. The District Court rejected the claim for eviction and surrender, prompting the plaintiffs to appeal.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Legal Situation: Termination and Duty to Offer<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

The central issue of the judgement was the question of whether the plaintiffs had fulfilled their duty to offer. This obligation means that a landlord who terminates a tenancy on the grounds of personal use must inform the tenant during the Cancellation period<\/a> must offer another, comparable flat if one is available in the same building or in the same residential complex. As the plaintiffs failed to do so, the defendants argued that the cancellation was invalid due to the breach of the principle of consideration.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Court Decision: Abuse of Rights Due to Failure to Offer<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

The Berlin Regional Court upheld the decision of the District Court and dismissed the plaintiffs\u2018 appeal. The court ruled that the plaintiffs had no claim for eviction and surrender, as the tenancy was not terminated by the notice of November 23, 2012. The crucial factor was the plaintiffs\u2018 failure to offer an alternative vacant apartment, rendering the termination abusive.<\/p>\n

Although the personal need could have been valid under \u00a7 573 Paragraph 2 No. 2 BGB, the plaintiffs failed to offer the vacant alternative apartment to the defendants. The court emphasized that the termination of a rental agreement represents a significant intrusion into the tenant\u2019s life, and the landlord is obligated to mitigate this impact as much as possible.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Plaintiffs\u2018 Arguments and Rejection<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

The plaintiffs argued that the defendants had stated in a letter dated December 15, 2014, that they had no interest in renting the vacant apartment. However, the court did not consider this to exempt the duty to offer. Even though the defendants declined the apartment, the obligation to offer it persisted during the termination period. Additionally, the plaintiffs argued that the apartments were not comparable, but the court refuted this. The alternative apartment was similar in size and number of rooms, and the kitchen-living room was to be treated as a regular room.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Conclusion: Invalidity of the Termination Due to Personal Need<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Ultimately, the court ruled that the termination of November 23, 2012, was invalid because the plaintiffs failed to fulfill their duty to offer an alternative apartment. The second termination, submitted later on November 10, 2014, was not considered due to procedural reasons. Therefore, the tenancy remained in effect, and the plaintiffs could not enforce the eviction of the apartment. The ruling highlighted the importance of the duty to offer and showed that violating this duty could lead to the invalidity of a termination due to personal need.<\/p>\n

Source: Berlin Regional Court<\/p>\n

Important Note: The content of this article has been prepared to the best of our knowledge and belief. However, due to the complexity and constant evolution of the subject matter, we must exclude liability and warranty.<\/strong> Important Notice: The content of this article has been created to the best of our knowledge and understanding. However, due to the complexity and constant changes in the subject matter, we must exclude any liability and warranty.<\/p>\n

If you need legal advice, please feel free to call us at 0221 - 80187670<\/strong> or send us an email at or send an email to info@mth-partner.de info@mth-partner.de<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lawyers in Cologne provide advice and representation in tenancy law.<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The landlord giving notice of termination is obliged to offer the tenant another comparable flat that is available to him during the notice period. This applies if this flat is located in the same building or in the same residential complex and the landlord wishes to let it again.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11961,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[3118,2528],"class_list":["post-5344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mietrecht-rechtsanwalt","tag-anbietpflicht-bei-eigenbedarfskuendigung","tag-rechtsanwalt-koeln-eigenbedarfskuendigung"],"yoast_head":"\nWohnraummiete: Rechtsmissbr\u00e4uchlichkeit einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung mangels Angebots einer freiwerdenden Alternativwohnung<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Besitzen die Vermieter eine weitere frei werdende Wohnung sollte diese den Empf\u00e4ngern einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung angeboten werden.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/residential-tenancy-abuse-of-rights-in-termination-due-to-personal-need-for-failure-to-offer-a-vacant-alternative-apartment\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Wohnraummiete: Rechtsmissbr\u00e4uchlichkeit einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung mangels Angebots einer freiwerdenden Alternativwohnung\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Besitzen die Vermieter eine weitere frei werdende Wohnung sollte diese den Empf\u00e4ngern einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung angeboten werden.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/residential-tenancy-abuse-of-rights-in-termination-due-to-personal-need-for-failure-to-offer-a-vacant-alternative-apartment\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rechtsanwaltskanzlei\u00a0Tieben\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=100054481000178\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-10-13T12:16:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-08-25T13:17:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"helmer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@mth_Tieben\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@mth_Tieben\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"helmer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Residential Tenancy: Abuse of Rights in Termination Due to Personal Need for Failure to Offer a Vacant Alternative Apartment","description":"If the landlords have another flat that becomes vacant, this should be offered to the recipients of a personal use cancellation.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/residential-tenancy-abuse-of-rights-in-termination-due-to-personal-need-for-failure-to-offer-a-vacant-alternative-apartment\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Wohnraummiete: Rechtsmissbr\u00e4uchlichkeit einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung mangels Angebots einer freiwerdenden Alternativwohnung","og_description":"Besitzen die Vermieter eine weitere frei werdende Wohnung sollte diese den Empf\u00e4ngern einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung angeboten werden.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/residential-tenancy-abuse-of-rights-in-termination-due-to-personal-need-for-failure-to-offer-a-vacant-alternative-apartment\/","og_site_name":"Rechtsanwaltskanzlei\u00a0Tieben","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=100054481000178","article_published_time":"2018-10-13T12:16:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-08-25T13:17:08+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"helmer","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@mth_Tieben","twitter_site":"@mth_Tieben","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"helmer","Estimated reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/"},"author":{"name":"helmer","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#\/schema\/person\/fbcf627706a8a6151cec2217af8c74b3"},"headline":"Wohnraummiete: Rechtsmissbr\u00e4uchlichkeit einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung mangels Angebots einer freiwerdenden Alternativwohnung","datePublished":"2018-10-13T12:16:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-08-25T13:17:08+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/"},"wordCount":956,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg","keywords":["Anbietpflicht bei Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung","Rechtsanwalt K\u00f6ln Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung"],"articleSection":["Zivilrecht"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/","url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/","name":"Residential Tenancy: Abuse of Rights in Termination Due to Personal Need for Failure to Offer a Vacant Alternative Apartment","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg","datePublished":"2018-10-13T12:16:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-08-25T13:17:08+00:00","description":"If the landlords have another flat that becomes vacant, this should be offered to the recipients of a personal use cancellation.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/Zivilrecht-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":600,"caption":"Zivilrecht"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wohnraummiete-rechtsmissbraeuchlichkeit-einer-eigenbedarfskuendigung-mangels-angebots-einer-freiwerdenden-alternativwohnung\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Zivilrecht","item":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/category\/mietrecht-rechtsanwalt\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Wohnraummiete: Rechtsmissbr\u00e4uchlichkeit einer Eigenbedarfsk\u00fcndigung mangels Angebots einer freiwerdenden Alternativwohnung"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/","name":"Law firm Tieben","description":"Lawyer Tieben \/ Law firm Cologne","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#organization","name":"Law firm Tieben","url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/logo.png","width":254,"height":52,"caption":"Rechtsanwaltskanzlei\u00a0Tieben"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=100054481000178","https:\/\/x.com\/mth_Tieben","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/helmer-tieben-09570226"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/#\/schema\/person\/fbcf627706a8a6151cec2217af8c74b3","name":"helmer","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3308295754604f18007cf9e14e5984d1b864d3edea19e3681ff8c9354cd73e8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3308295754604f18007cf9e14e5984d1b864d3edea19e3681ff8c9354cd73e8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3308295754604f18007cf9e14e5984d1b864d3edea19e3681ff8c9354cd73e8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"helmer"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5344"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5344\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9460,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5344\/revisions\/9460"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}