Terminating a tenancy as a landlord —legally compliant

When may the landlord terminate?

Unlike the tenant, the landlord needs always a legitimate reason (German Civil Code):

• Eigenbedarf (§573 Abs. 2 Nr. 2 BGB) — meistgenutzter Grund
• A serious breach of contract by the tenant
• Economic realisation (§573(2) no. 3 BGB) — rarely possible
• Default on rent payments (§543 + German Civil Code) — termination without notice possible

Termination for personal use — the most commonly used form

Requirements:

• Specific person who wishes to move in (yourself, spouse, child, parents, siblings, grandparents, parents-in-law)
• Specific housing need — justification (e.g. "My 19-year-old son is starting his studies in London in October")
• Proportionality — no significantly smaller/poorer flat available
• Kein "vorgeschobener" Eigenbedarf — wirkliche Nutzungsabsicht muss bestehen

Notice periods:

• Up to 5 years' tenancy: 3 months
• 5-8 Jahre: 6 Monate
• Over 8 years: 9 months

In the case of a pretextual termination for personal use: the tenant can claim damages under German Civil Code (moving costs + any rent difference for 24 months).

Termination without notice for rent arrears

Possible under §543 Abs. 2 Nr. 3 BGB:

• The tenant is in arrears by 2 full months' rent, OR
• In arrears over a period of more than 2 months by an amount equal to 2 months' rent

Cure possible: If the tenant pays the entire arrears amount within 2 months of the eviction action, the termination is invalid (§569 Abs. 3 Nr. 2 BGB). Cure is only possible once every 5 years.

Formal requirements

• Written form mandatory (German Civil Code) — email is NOT sufficient, nor is WhatsApp
• Unterschrift handschriftlich auf Originalbrief
• Delivery by registered post with acknowledgement of receipt (for proof)
• Justification detailed + comprehensible
• Notice of the tenant's right to object under German Civil Code

Hardship clause (German Civil Code) — the frequent objection

The tenant can object to the termination if ending the tenancy would, for them, their family or another relative, constitute a Hardship hardship:

• Hohes Alter + lange Wohndauer
• Schwere Krankheit, Schwangerschaft
• Disability, need for care
• School-change problems for children
• No suitable alternative accommodation available

The tenant must object within 2 months before the eviction date. The court then decides after weighing the interests.

How Rentprime helps you

Rentprime has a Termination assistant: you select the reason for termination (personal use, without notice, realisation), the system calculates the correct notice period (based on the tenancy duration), generates the BGB-compliant termination letter with all mandatory notices — ready to send by registered post with proof of delivery. The documentation obligation (reasoning, evidence) is automatically saved in the audit log for any eviction action.

Related topics: Dunning letter templates · Rent reduction in practice · Tenancy agreement module