Certified administrator under § 26a WEG: what owners can demand

Since 1 December 2023, appointing a certified administrator has been part of proper management (§ 19 Abs. 2 Nr. 6 WEG). Every individual flat owner can demand proper management from the owners' association (§ 18 Abs. 2 WEG), and therefore also a certified administrator.

A transitional rule applied to administrators who were already in office on 1 December 2020: they were deemed certified vis-à-vis the owners of that association until 1 June 2024 (§ 48 Abs. 4 WEG). This grace period ended more than a year ago. Whenever an administrator is appointed or reappointed, the question of evidence arises.

Who counts as certified

A person is certified if they have passed the examination under the Certified Administrator Examination Ordinance (Zertifizierter-Verwalter-Prüfungsverordnung) at a Chamber of Industry and Commerce (Industrie- und Handelskammer). The examination consists of a written part lasting at least 90 minutes and an oral part lasting at least 15 minutes per candidate, which relates mainly to the Condominium Act (Wohnungseigentumsgesetz). The written part is passed if at least 50 per cent of the marks are achieved in each subject area. The examination covers legal, commercial and technical fundamentals, such as annual statements and budgets, the Heating Costs Ordinance (Heizkostenverordnung), the Drinking Water Ordinance (Trinkwasserverordnung) and building services. The examination may be retaken any number of times.

Under § 7 of the Ordinance, the following are treated as equivalent without an examination: persons qualified to hold judicial office, persons who have completed training as a real estate agent and manager (Immobilienkauffrau or Immobilienkaufmann, including the former real estate and housing industry qualification), certified real estate specialists (Geprüfte Immobilienfachwirte) and graduates of a university degree with a focus on real estate.

A management company may call itself certified if all employees directly entrusted with WEG management have passed the examination or are treated as equivalent (§ 8 of the Ordinance). This also includes the property managers looking after individual properties.

The exception for small associations

There is no entitlement if the association has fewer than nine units, a flat owner has been appointed as administrator and fewer than a third of the owners demand a certified administrator. All three conditions must be met together.

What to bear in mind when appointing

A resolution appointing a non-certified administrator when no exception applies does not constitute proper management and can be challenged. An action for annulment must be brought within one month of the resolution (§ 45 WEG). Property management firms should therefore enclose evidence of certification or equivalence with the invitation to the meeting.

DELA covers the content of the examination under § 26a WEG in its Property Management Specialist course.