Balcony solar, wallbox, fibre: your right to alterations in a German WEG

Five measures with special status

In a German owners’ association (WEG), structural alterations to the common property normally need a majority. For five types of measure, the legislator reversed this: every owner can demand that they be permitted, as long as they are reasonable (§ 20(2) WEG). Privileged measures are those that

1. serve use by people with disabilities, such as a stairlift or a ramp,
2. serve the charging of electric vehicles — wallbox and cabling,
3. serve burglary protection, such as a burglar-resistant front door or window bars,
4. enable connection to a very high-capacity network — in practice, fibre,
5. serve electricity generation by plug-in solar devices — the balcony power plant (Balkonkraftwerk), privileged since October 2024.

For these measures, the association no longer decides whether, only how.

A right does not mean “just install it”

This is the most common misunderstanding. Even a privileged measure needs a resolution of the owners’ meeting (§ 20(1) WEG). What you have is a right to have that resolution passed.

In the resolution, the association sets what it may set under proper management: exactly where the device goes, how it is fixed, its colour and size, that a qualified firm installs it, that you are liable for damage and will remove it when you move out or sell. These conditions must be objectively justified; they may not block the measure through the back door.

Installing without a resolution is unlawful — even if you would have been entitled to it. The association can then demand removal. If the meeting rejects your request, you can bring an action to have the resolution substituted (§ 44(1) sentence 2 WEG), in which the court passes the resolution in place of the association.

Balcony solar in practice

The balcony parapet and the façade are common property. So a balcony solar device is a structural alteration whose execution the association decides on — typically fixing to the parapet or railing, fall protection, wind load and appearance.

Technically, product standard DIN VDE V 0126-95 has applied since December 2025. Inverter output is capped at 800 watts. On an ordinary Schuko socket, up to 960 watts of panel capacity are allowed; with a dedicated energy connector, up to 2,000 watts. Multi-socket adapters are not allowed, and only one device per household. The device only needs registering in the Federal Network Agency’s market master data register (Marktstammdatenregister); a separate notification to the grid operator is no longer required.

A good request anticipates these points and gives the association no reason to postpone the matter.

Wallboxes in practice

EV chargers are more complex because they connect to the whole building’s electrical installation. The decisive question is usually the capacity of the building’s grid connection. A single wallbox is rarely a problem; ten uncontrolled ones almost always are.

It is therefore wise for the association to resolve on an overall concept: a base installation with load management, to which individual owners connect their wallbox. If the association resolves on such a base installation for everyone, the general rules for structural alterations govern how costs are split; see our article on structural alterations.

You need a parking space you are entitled to use exclusively — as part of your unit or under an exclusive use right (Sondernutzungsrecht). Underground car parks add fire safety requirements.

Who pays

Whoever demands and carries out a privileged measure bears the costs alone, including running costs for maintenance, insurance and electricity (§ 21(1) WEG). In return, you alone enjoy the benefits.

If another owner later wants to share in your measure — for instance the cable you laid into the underground car park — they can demand this against reasonable compensation (§ 21(4) WEG). So keep your invoices.

The limit

No structural alteration, privileged or not, may fundamentally reshape the property or unfairly disadvantage another owner without their consent (§ 20(4) WEG). A balcony solar device practically never reaches this limit. An external lift on the façade might.

How to make the request

If the matter cannot wait until the next ordinary meeting, a resolution can also be passed by written circulation — but only if all owners agree in text form. How meetings and agendas work is covered in our article on the owners’ meeting.

If you let the flat, your tenant can demand that you permit a balcony solar device or charging point (§ 554 BGB). Obtaining the association’s permission is then up to you.

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Ravenica prepares requests for privileged measures so the association can decide in a single meeting — with standard conditions for installation, liability and removal that apply equally to all owners.