Owners in a German owners association (WEG) may remove their manager at any time by resolution, no good cause required (§ 26 (1) and (3) sentence 1 WEG). The appointment ends with that resolution, the management contract within six months of removal (§ 26 (3) WEG). The right of removal is non-waivable (§ 26 (5) WEG). An appointment runs five years at most, three the first time after the condominium is created (§ 26 (2) WEG).
The key throughout is to keep two things cleanly apart: the appointment as a corporate act and the management contract as a separate contractual arrangement. This guide sets out the legal position and the process step by step.
Appointment and management contract: two separate legal relationships
In practice the two terms are often mixed up, although they follow different rules.
The appointment is the corporate act. By resolution at the owners meeting, a person or company is designated as the manager of the community (§ 26 (1) WEG). Only the appointment gives the manager their statutory position as an organ of the community, with the powers conferred by the WEG.
The management contract is the separate contractual agreement concluded alongside it. It governs the commercial details: fees, scope of services, special fees, notice periods and term. The contracting party is the community of owners (GdWE). Which fee models are usual there, what the base fee covers and where extra fees legitimately begin is set out in the guide to property management fees.
This separation has an important consequence: the community can remove the manager from their corporate position by resolution without the contract ending at the same moment. Appointment and contract therefore have a different legal fate, and the two must be distinguished when changing manager.
| Feature | Appointment | Management contract |
|---|---|---|
| Legal nature | corporate act | contractual agreement |
| Creation | resolution (§ 26 (1) WEG) | contract with the GdWE |
| Content | position as organ of the community | fees, services, term |
| Maximum term | 5 years, first appointment 3 years | freely agreed, often aligned to the appointment term |
| End | immediately on removal resolution | no later than 6 months after removal |
Term of appointment and the first appointment
The appointment is limited in time. Under § 26 (2) WEG the manager may be appointed for a maximum of five years. For the first appointment after condominium ownership was created the maximum term is reduced to three years. The legislator wants to prevent a young community from being tied long-term to a manager chosen by the developer (the dividing owner).
How that cap plays out in a new build, where the dividing owner often appoints the first manager while still the only owner, is set out in our guide to the first owners meeting in a new build.
Reappointment is possible but requires a fresh resolution. It may be passed at the earliest one year before the current appointment expires. If the appointment lapses without a new resolution, the community has no manager and should act in good time.
Removal: at any time and without cause
The central lever in changing manager is removal. Under § 26 (3) sentence 1 WEG the manager can be removed at any time. This means:
- A simple majority resolution of the owners meeting suffices, that is the majority of the votes cast.
- Good cause is not required. The community does not have to justify its decision.
- Removal takes effect when the resolution is announced and ends the corporate position immediately.
This freedom is secured by statute: under § 26 (5) WEG, deviations from paragraphs 1 to 3 are not permitted. Neither an agreement nor a clause in the management contract can exclude or impede the right to remove the manager at any time, for instance by requiring good cause. Such clauses are void.
Consequence for the contract: ending after six months at the latest
While the appointment ends immediately on removal, the contractual management agreement continues to run for a while. Under § 26 (3) sentence 2 WEG the contract ends no later than six months after removal.
This is a statutory upper limit, not a fixed period. If a new manager is appointed and the office is handed over in an orderly way at the same time, the old manager’s contract usually ends earlier. The six-month rule above all prevents a long-term contract from binding the community to payments for years despite the removal. Until the contract ends, the removed manager may in certain cases claim the agreed fee without still being active, provided the community brought about the early termination without good cause.
Example: A community is dissatisfied with its manager and removes them by resolution on 15 March. The corporate position ends at once. At the same time it appoints a new manager from 1 April. By operation of law the old contract would end no later than 15 September; thanks to the orderly handover on 1 April it ends in practice considerably earlier.
Entitlement to a certified manager
Since the WEG reform there is the certified manager (§ 26a WEG). A person may call themselves certified if they have proved before a Chamber of Industry and Commerce, by examination, that they have the necessary legal, commercial and technical knowledge. Certain qualifications (such as a fully qualified lawyer, a trained property agent or a relevant university degree) count as equivalent and exempt the holder from the examination.
Proper administration under § 19 (2) no. 6 WEG includes the appointment of a certified manager. Each owner can in principle demand this appointment. An exception applies only to small communities: where there are fewer than nine separate ownership rights, an owner is appointed as manager and fewer than one third of owners request certification, the obligation does not apply. The requirement has applied since 1 December 2023; for managers already active on 1 December 2020 there was a transitional period until 1 June 2024 (§ 48 (4) WEG). When changing manager, the new manager’s certification should therefore be checked from the outset.
Changing the manager step by step
A change works best when removal, new appointment and handover dovetail. The checklist below summarises the process.
| Step | Content |
|---|---|
| 1. Preparation | Select the new manager, check offers and certification, agree the key terms of the new contract |
| 2. Convene meeting | Put the agenda items “removal of the current manager” and “new appointment” on the agenda |
| 3. Resolution on removal | Simple majority resolution under § 26 (3) WEG, without good cause |
| 4. Resolution on appointment | Appoint the new manager (max. 5 years) and authorise the conclusion of the contract |
| 5. Handover | Full handover of all records and the community assets to the new manager |
| 6. Banks and authorisations | Transfer community accounts and bank authorisations to the new manager, revoke old authorisations |
| 7. Completion | Request the old manager’s final statement, document the handover |
The handover is particularly sensitive. The outgoing manager is obliged to hand over all administrative records and the entire community assets: the resolution record, the declaration of division and community rules, contracts, insurance policies, annual statements, budgets, receipts and all bank documents. If the handover is delayed, the new manager can only work to a limited extent. The bank authorisations are a critical point in their own right: only when the new manager has access to the community accounts and the old authorisations have been revoked is the change financially secure.
What to look for when choosing
A change is only worthwhile if the new manager is a better fit. Before appointing, check:
- certification under § 26a WEG or an equivalent qualification
- transparent fees: a clear basic fee and comprehensible special charges
- availability and response times, plus a fixed contact person
- references from comparable properties in the region
- insurance cover (financial loss liability insurance)
- separate account management for each community managed
For owners in Frankfurt and the Rhine-Main region a local presence is also valuable: a manager who knows the property and the market reacts faster to damage, contractor appointments and meetings. Anyone planning a change can request a non-binding offer for condominium management in Frankfurt and a certified property management. If you let out individual units, a rental management service is a sensible complement to WEG management.
A well-prepared change of manager is not a rupture but an orderly transition: removal and new appointment at a single meeting, a clean handover of records and accounts, and the community carries on without a gap, with a manager that genuinely fits.
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Sources
Editorial responsibility: digo.immo Verwaltung & Invest - certified residential property manager under § 26a WEG (IHK Frankfurt), licence under § 34c GewO. About the certification
This article provides general information only and does not replace individual legal advice. It was created with AI assistance; the legal statements have been checked against the official texts of the law. Legal status: 31/08/2026; laws and case law may change. No warranty is given as to completeness, accuracy or timeliness. When in doubt, please seek qualified advice.