01.

November

If an owner, contrary to his commitment, sells a condominium unit in a neighborhood preservation zone not to the tenants but to a civil law partnership (GbR) consisting of his own partners, this does not constitute a privileged “sale to the tenants” within the meaning of § 172(4), sentence 3, no. 6 of the German Building Code (BauGB). The Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg has therefore upheld the revocation of a preservation-law permit that had previously been deemed to have taken effect. The authority was permitted to revoke the unlawful administrative act within the one-year period because there was no legitimate expectation of protection.

01.

November

The Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg has declared the expansion of a neighborhood preservation ordinance in the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district invalid because the district failed to provide plausible evidence that the legal requirements for expanding the preservation area had been met. Two conflicting expert opinions from 2015 and 2019 would have required a particularly thorough justification, which the district office failed to provide. The decision highlights the strict requirements that must be met regarding the data basis for a preservation ordinance under Section 172 of the German Building Code (BauGB).

30.

October

Anyone who wishes to expand their apartment in a social preservation zone (milieu protection zone) into a duplex by converting the attic and breaking through the ceiling must obtain a permit under preservation law. The Berlin Administrative Court has ruled that this permit may be denied if the expansion is likely to displace the resident population in the area—even if the apartment itself is not withdrawn from the market. In the case in question, the mere abstract risk of displacement due to a “knock-on effect” was sufficient grounds for denial.

22.

October

According to a ruling by the Berlin Administrative Court, anyone who retrofits a residential building with more than four stories in a Berlin neighborhood preservation zone with an elevator is entitled to a permit if the measure does not entail unusually high costs and there is no above-average displacement pressure in that specific area. The court ordered the Mitte District Office to grant a property owner a permit under preservation law for an exterior elevator. The building code requirement for elevators in buildings with more than four above-ground stories serves as strong evidence of a right to a permit.

18.

October

If a construction project is significantly delayed and the architect is not at fault, this ruling allows the architect to bill for the actual additional costs incurred—based on the personnel costs actually incurred, not the originally agreed-upon hourly rates. The Berlin Regional Court II awarded a planning consortium responsible for the major renovation of the Pergamon Museum an additional €332,565.63 in compensation. The decisive factor was that the delays were due to circumstances beyond the architects’ control.

18.

March

No prohibition on subdivision for roof extensions or conversions! Following the federal legislature’s extension of the regulatory authority under Section 250 of the German Building Code (BauGB) (the so-called prohibition on subdivision) until December 31, 2030, a new provision was added to Section 250(1), sentence 2 of the BauGB stating that the approval requirement in sentence 1 does not apply to areas where additional living space is created. This clarification has […]