Eviction process in brandenburg, germany

When a commercial lease ends, it usually involves a lot of money and the need for a swift re-letting for the landlord. While commercial tenancy law in Brandenburg is generally less protective than the residential sector, it does not completely lack protections; terminations and evictions are structurally more straightforward but still require a clean contractual basis and adherence to general BGB principles.

Ordinary Termination for Indefinite Contracts

Many commercial lease agreements do not run indefinitely but are "fixed-termers" (e.g., 5 or 10 years with extension options). A fixed-term lease can generally not be ordinarily terminated; it ends by expiration of time.

However, if the commercial lease was concluded for an indefinite period (or is considered indefinite due to a formal defect under § 550 BGB), either party can exercise the right of ordinary termination. A legitimate interest, such as personal use, is not necessary in commercial leases.

The Notice Period (§ 580a BGB): Notice periods are determined by the timing of the payment intervals or the specific statutory rules for business premises. For example, termination may be permissible no later than the third working day of a calendar quarter to the end of the next calendar quarter, provided no deviating periods were agreed upon in the contract. There is no strict "maximum 6 months" rule.

Immediate (Extraordinary) Termination

An extraordinary termination for an important reason (§ 543 BGB) is possible at any time for all contracts-even those with a fixed term-provided there is severe misconduct that makes continuation unreasonable for the landlord.

Common Reasons in Commercial Properties:

1. Payment Default:

• The tenant is in default with the payment of rent or a not insubstantial part of the rent for two consecutive dates.
• The tenant is in arrears with an amount of at least two full months' rent over a longer period.

2. Failure to Provide the Deposit: If the often high security deposit amount is not provided as contractually required.
3. Breach of Contract: Serious violations, such as unauthorized types of use, structural changes without consent, or illegal activities on the premises.

Note: The statutory "healing" of a termination due to payment default (expiration of the termination by settling all arrears within a court-granted grace period) does not apply in commercial tenancy law. A lawful immediate termination cannot be averted by subsequent payment.

The Eviction Process

If the tenant of an office, retail space, or logistics center does not vacate voluntarily, the judicial route (eviction lawsuit / Räumungsklage) must obligatorily be taken. "Cold evictions" (e.g., shutting off the electricity or changing locks independently) are prohibited self-help (verbotene Eigenmacht), make the landlord liable for damages, and partly count as coercion.

The Procedure for Landlords in Brandenburg:

1. Filing the Eviction Lawsuit: In commercial tenancy law, regardless of the value in dispute, the local Regional Court (Landgericht) is often responsible if the value in dispute (annual net cold rent) exceeds €5,000; otherwise, the District Court (Amtsgericht).
2. Documentary Proceedings (Urkundsprozess) for Payment Default: Since it often concerns clear numbers, the landlord can sue in documentary proceedings. Here, only documents (i.e., the lease agreement and bank statements) are permitted as evidence, eliminating tedious witness interviews and allowing for a faster preliminary judgment.
3. "Berlin Eviction": In commercial leases as well, the landlord can choose the "Berlin Eviction" method. The court bailiff merely changes the locks and places the landlord in sole possession; the inventory remains in the space. To use the tenant's inventory, the landlord uses their applicable Landlord's Lien (Vermieterpfandrecht).
4. Utilization of Inventory: In the commercial sector, fixtures and product inventories are often worth considerable sums. By enforcing the landlord's lien, the landlord can sell these items to compensate for rent arrears.

How Landager Helps

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