The key facts at a glance
- The owners' meeting can remove the property manager at any time. Since the 2020 condominium law reform, no important reason is required.
- The management contract then ends automatically no later than six months after the removal, often earlier.
- A simple majority of the votes cast is enough for both the removal and the new appointment.
- Before appointing a new management company, comparison quotes should be obtained; three is customary.
- With good preparation, the switch is completed within two to four months, usually without any legal assistance at all.
On this page
- Typical reasons for a switch
- The legal position: your rights as an owner
- Notice periods at a glance
- The process in six steps
- Meeting or circular resolution?
- Comparison quotes: obligation and opportunity
- What does switching cost?
- Common concerns, briefly put to rest
- Rental and individually owned unit management
- Checklist for the switch
- Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Typical reasons: you are not alone
The reasons for changing property managers are similar in almost every owners' association. Four situations come up particularly often:
- The management company does not renew or gives notice itself. That sounds like a crisis at first, but the reasons behind it are usually perfectly ordinary: retirement, staff shortages or a change in the company's focus. For you, it simply means finding a good successor in time.
- Dissatisfaction with the service. Unanswered emails, resolutions left unimplemented, faulty statements: once the trust is used up, you are free to act, and you do not owe anyone a justification.
- A significant price increase. An increase may well be justified, but it is always a good occasion to compare price and service with other providers. That is exactly what comparison quotes are for.
- The wish for a more modern management company. An owner portal, digital access to documents, fast communication: many associations today actively switch to a digitally organized management company without anything having "gone wrong" first.
Whichever situation applies to your association: the path is always the same, it is clearly regulated by law and it is very manageable. Let us walk through it.
The legal position: you have more rights than you think
Legally, a change of property manager involves two things that are worth keeping apart: the appointment (the manager's "office", which the owners' meeting decides on by resolution) and the management contract (the service contract covering fees, term and scope of services). In practice, both are ended and renewed together, but the distinction helps in understanding the deadlines.
The decisive point: since the condominium law reform took effect on December 1, 2020, the owners' meeting can remove the property manager at any time. An important reason is no longer required, nor is any justification (Section 26(3) of the German Condominium Act, WEG). The management contract then ends automatically no later than six months after the removal, even if it would otherwise have run longer.
Good to know
In the past, management contracts could severely restrict removal, for example to cases involving an "important reason". Those days are over: the right to remove the manager at any time now applies in every owners' association, regardless of what the contract says.
Also useful to know: a property manager is appointed for a maximum of five years, or for a maximum of three years in the case of the very first appointment after the property has been divided into condominium units (Section 26 WEG). And your association is generally entitled to the appointment of a certified property manager with a qualification examined by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) (Section 26a WEG); only very small, self-managed associations are exempt.
Notice periods: which deadlines really apply
The most common question first: "How long are we still bound?" The answer depends on how the switch comes about. Three scenarios cover practically all cases:
1. The appointment is expiring anyway
Then there is nothing to terminate at all. You simply let the appointment run out, choose a new management company in good time and arrange the handover. Ideally, start the search about six to nine months before the term ends; that keeps everything relaxed.
2. You want to switch early
The owners' meeting resolves the removal, ideally with a specific effective date. No later than six months afterwards, the contract ends automatically. In practice, the parties often agree on a much earlier end: a management company that has been removed has little interest in carrying on for months. A short mutual termination agreement settles this cleanly and amicably.
3. The management company gives notice itself or does not renew
Then the notice periods in the management contract apply. Until the very last day, the management company remains obliged to keep working properly, including an orderly handover. So you have plenty of time to compare and decide at your leisure.
Tip for getting started
Start by taking a look at the management contract and the most recent appointment resolution: the term, termination clauses and effective dates are all in there. With those, you can sketch the timeline for your switch in five minutes.
The process: six steps to your new property management company
This is how a well-structured switch works. As an advisory board member or committed owner, you can fully prepare the first three steps before any meeting even takes place.
Align in a small group
Talk to the advisory board and a few committed owners: is there a majority in favor of a switch? While you are at it, collect the requirements for the new management company, for example property size, desired services, availability and digital features such as an owner portal.
Obtain comparison quotes
Obtain several quotes; three is customary. Make sure the quotes are comparable: the same scope of services, the price per unit per month, and the costs of additional services. This is also the best market overview your association can get.
Comparison quotes without the legwork
Describe your property in two minutes. We find suitable property management companies from your region that match your requirements, and you receive non-binding quotes. 100% free of charge for owners.
Compare and meet the candidates
Have a conversation with the two or three strongest candidates, a video call works fine. Good things to probe: a dedicated contact person and stand-in arrangements, response times, an owner portal and digital processes, experience with comparable properties, qualifications and certification, a transparent fee structure, and a well-practiced onboarding process for the switch.
Prepare the owners' meeting
The meeting is the formal core of the switch. The agenda should include: the removal of the current management company (with an effective date), where applicable the termination or cancellation of the old contract, the appointment of the new management company, the conclusion of the new management contract, and the authorization of one person (often the chair of the advisory board) to sign the contract.
Invitations must go out with at least three weeks' notice. In principle, the incumbent management company must convene the meeting. If more than a quarter of the owners request a meeting in text form, it has to be convened. And if the management company stonewalls or can no longer be reached: then the chair of the advisory board, their deputy or an owner authorized by resolution may issue the invitation. So nobody can block the switch.
Pass the resolutions
In the meeting, a simple majority of the votes cast is sufficient; abstentions do not count. Since the condominium law reform, every meeting automatically has a quorum, no matter how many owners attend. Anyone who cannot make it simply grants a proxy. By default, each owner has one vote (the one-owner-one-vote principle), unless your association's community rules provide otherwise.
Organize the handover
After the resolution, the new management company usually takes the wheel and coordinates the handover: the management records (they belong to the association and must be handed over in full), the bank accounts (they are held in the name of the association and simply stay in place), notifying service providers, utilities and owners, and passing on ongoing matters. Professional management companies work with well-practiced checklists here. For you as an owner, this is the most comfortable part of the switch.
Owners' meeting or written resolution?
Removal and new appointment require resolutions by the owners. The standard route is the owners' meeting: either the regular annual meeting or, if things need to move faster, a specially convened extraordinary meeting. Since the condominium law reform, hybrid meetings are also possible, with some owners joining online. And since October 2024, the association can even permit purely virtual meetings with a three-quarters majority.
It also works entirely without a meeting, via a so-called circular resolution: the text of the resolution is sent to all owners, and they approve it in text form; a simple email is enough. The catch: every single owner must agree, not just a majority. In small associations where everyone is on the same page, this is the fastest route. In larger buildings, however, it often fails because of one single owner who happens to be on vacation.
Practical takeaway: if everyone agrees, use the circular resolution. In all other cases, the extraordinary meeting is the most reliable route: three weeks' notice, one date, clear majorities. (In addition, a meeting can allow the circular procedure with a simple majority for one specific resolution item; however, that is usually only worthwhile if a meeting is taking place anyway.)
Do several quotes have to be obtained? Yes, and that is a good thing
When appointing a new management company, case law requires that the owners have a genuine choice: before the resolution, comparison quotes should be obtained; three is customary (German Federal Court of Justice, judgment of January 24, 2020, case V ZR 110/19). If they are missing, the resolution is not automatically void, but it can be challenged in court within one month. Nobody wants to take that risk, and there is no need to.
Incidentally, the quotes do not necessarily have to be sent out with the invitation. It is enough for the owners to know the key facts (provider, scope of services, price) in good time before the vote, for example in advance by email or in the meeting itself. For the mere reappointment of the incumbent management company, no comparison quotes are required.
See the obligation as an opportunity: laying three quotes side by side gives you a realistic feel for market-standard prices and services, and you automatically negotiate from a stronger position. And you are welcome to leave the collecting of quotes to us: Get free quotes from management companies in your region.
What does the switch cost?
The reassuring answer: the switch itself usually costs your association nothing. There is no "switching fee" and no severance payment to the old management company. Still, keep three points in view:
- Fees until the end of the contract: until the old contract effectively ends, the outgoing management company is entitled to its fee. So line up the effective dates of the old and new contracts cleanly, to avoid paying twice.
- The new management company's setup fee: some management companies charge a one-time fee for the takeover (data entry, account migration, familiarization). It is stated transparently in the quote and is negotiable.
- Organizational items: room rental and postage for an extraordinary meeting. This remains modest and is even lower with hybrid or virtual formats.
Set against these modest items is the real gain: a management company that suits your property, is reachable and produces accurate statements.
Common concerns, briefly put to rest
To close the legal part in everyday language: the six sentences we hear most often, and what is really behind them.
"The old management company will never hand over the records."
Yes, it must: the collection of resolutions, the statements, contracts and receipts belong to the association, not to the manager. Handing them over is a legal obligation and can be enforced if necessary. In practice, the new management company requests the records with a checklist, and the handover goes off without drama.
"Then we will be left without a management company in between."
That can almost always be avoided: removal and new appointment are resolved in the same meeting, with effective dates that follow on seamlessly. And even if a gap does open up once, the association remains capable of acting and is represented jointly by the owners in the meantime.
"Mid financial year, that is bound to cause chaos with the annual statement."
A switch at the turn of the year is the most convenient, but not a must. The transition also works mid-year with a clear cut-off date. The annual service charge statement is then generally prepared by whichever management company is in office at the time it is drawn up, based on the fully handed-over records.
"Without an active advisory board, we will never manage this."
An advisory board makes many things easier, but it is not a prerequisite. Every individual owner can obtain quotes and submit items for the agenda. And more than a quarter of the owners can even force a meeting to be convened.
"This is bound to turn into an ugly dispute."
It does not have to: since no reason is required for the removal anymore, nothing needs to be "proven" against anyone either. The switch is a perfectly normal business decision by your association, not a tribunal. Professional management companies know this and handle the handover in a matter-of-fact way.
"We will not find a better management company anyway."
The market is on the move: modern, digitally organized management companies in particular are continuously taking on new properties. The key is to search specifically by region and requirements. That is exactly what we help you with, free of charge and without obligation.
Special case: rental property management and individually owned units
Everything described above applies to WEG management, that is, the management of the common property. Switching is considerably simpler for rental property management (for rented buildings) and for the management of individually owned rental units (Sondereigentumsverwaltung): here you decide alone as the owner. No meeting and no resolutions are needed.
- Termination: the notice periods in the management contract apply. If no fixed term has been agreed, the short statutory notice periods of the German Civil Code (BGB) apply; with a monthly fee, termination is then usually possible up to the 15th of a month with effect from the end of that month (Section 621 BGB).
- Handover: the important items are the leases and handover protocols, open items, the records for the service charge settlement and, above all, the properly documented transfer of the security deposits.
- Informing tenants: a short letter with the new contact person and bank details is enough. The new management company usually takes care of this.
Your checklist for the switch
- Review the management contract and the appointment resolution: term, notice periods, effective dates
- Find allies and gauge the mood in the association
- Define the requirements for the new management company (services, availability, digital features)
- Obtain comparison quotes; three is customary
- Hold interviews, check references and qualifications
- Convene the meeting with a clear agenda (notice period: at least three weeks)
- Pass the resolutions: removal, new appointment, management contract, signing authorization
- Sign the new management contract (through the authorized person)
- Coordinate the handover: records, accounts, service providers, ongoing matters
- Inform the owners (and, for rented properties, the tenants) about the new management company
Frequently asked questions about switching property managers
Do we need an important reason to switch our property management company?
No. Since the 2020 condominium law reform (WEMoG), the owners' meeting can remove the property manager at any time without giving reasons. The management contract ends no later than six months after the removal.
How long does it take to switch property managers?
With good preparation, usually two to four months. The main timing factors are the notice period for convening the owners' meeting, at least three weeks, and the desired effective date, often the end of a quarter or the end of the year.
Who convenes the owners' meeting if the management company refuses?
In that case, the chair of the owners' advisory board, their deputy or an owner authorized by resolution may convene the meeting. In addition, the management company must convene a meeting if more than a quarter of the owners request it in text form.
Can we switch without an owners' meeting, for example in writing?
Yes, through a circular resolution in text form, for example by email. However, all owners must agree, not just a majority. In practice, an extraordinary owners' meeting is therefore usually the more reliable route.
Do the owners have to be presented with several quotes?
When appointing a new management company, case law requires that comparison quotes be obtained; three is customary. If they are missing, the resolution initially remains valid but can be challenged within one month. No comparison quotes are needed to reappoint the incumbent management company.
What happens to the association's existing contracts, such as the caretaker or insurance policies?
Nothing. These contracts exist with the owners' association and continue unchanged. The new management company simply takes over their administration.
What does switching property management companies cost?
As a rule, there are no switching costs. What matters is clean effective dates, so that the old and the new fee do not overlap. Some management companies charge a one-time setup fee, which is stated in the quote.
Does the new property management company have to be certified?
The owners can demand the appointment of a certified property manager under Section 26a of the German Condominium Act (WEG). Only very small, self-managed associations are exempt. Proven qualifications are a good selection criterion in any case.
What if we are temporarily without a management company?
The owners' association remains capable of acting even without a manager and is represented jointly by the owners. With seamless effective dates for removal and new appointment, no gap arises in practice.
Does this process also apply to rental property management and individually owned rental units?
There, switching is even easier. The owner terminates the contract in line with the agreed notice periods and appoints a new management company. No resolutions or meetings are required.
Related guides
This guide was prepared with great care (last updated: July 2026), but it does not replace legal advice in individual cases. For special situations, for example deviating provisions in your association's community rules, a law firm specializing in German condominium law (WEG law) can assist.