When a rent reduction is excluded: 7 grounds

1. Knowing about the defect at signing (§ 536b BGB)

If you know about a defect when you sign the tenancy agreement and move in anyway, you cannot later reduce the rent because of it. The same applies if you failed to notice the defect only through gross negligence — that is, it was hard to miss during the viewing.

The exception: if you expressly reserved your rights because of the defect when taking over the flat, the right to reduce survives. Always have such a reservation recorded in the handover protocol (Übergabeprotokoll).

2. Failing to give notice of the defect (§ 536c BGB)

If you do not report a defect without delay and the landlord therefore cannot remedy it, you lose the right to reduce. On top of that you can become liable to him for damages.

If the landlord already knows about the defect from another source, the duty to report falls away. You should still never rely on that.

3. Minor defects and insignificant impairments

Under § 536 Abs. 1 Satz 3 BGB an only insignificant reduction in fitness for use is disregarded. What is meant are defects that are easy to spot and cheap to fix.

• A single dripping tap
• A room door that sticks slightly
• A single cracked tile
• One broken socket where enough others are available

4. Defects you caused yourself

If you, members of your household or your guests caused the defect, there is no right to reduce. The classic case is mould from insufficient ventilation and heating.

For your position the burden of proof is decisive, and it lies with the landlord. He must first rule out structural causes such as thermal bridges or missing insulation. Only if he succeeds does your own conduct come into play at all.

5. Forfeiture through waiting too long

If you pay the full rent without reservation over a long period although you know about the defect, your right to reduce may exceptionally be forfeited. The time element and a legitimate expectation on the landlord's part are required together; there is no fixed benchmark such as “six months”.

6. Energy-efficiency modernisation (§ 536 Abs. 1a BGB)

For energy-efficiency modernisation works within the meaning of § 555b Nr. 1 BGB, rent reduction is excluded for three months. The condition is that the landlord announced the works properly and in good time.

After those three months you may reduce. And the exclusion applies only to energy-related works; general modernisation or plain maintenance does not fall under it.

7. Socially normal and locally customary impairments

The yardstick is always the condition at the time the agreement was made. What deteriorated afterwards can be a defect. What was like that from the start, you rented along with the flat.

• Ordinary living noise in a block of flats, children at play included
• Street noise in a city-centre location that already existed when you moved in
• The usual cooking smells from neighbouring flats
• Impairments caused by your own use of the flat in breach of the agreement

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