Letting
Letting to students: setting up a WG (flatshare) in Nuremberg properly
Short answer
With a flatshare (WG), the type of contract decides almost everything. Individual tenancy agreements per room bring higher total income and make every move-out manageable, but cause more management work. One joint contract with all residents is simpler, but turns every change of resident into a contract amendment that everyone has to agree to.
Switching pack for your owners’ meeting Request the pack
Why this segment works in Nuremberg
Nuremberg has an unusually broad higher-education landscape: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität (FAU) with sites in the city, the Technische Hochschule Nürnberg and the developing University of Technology Nuremberg. On top of that come vocational academies, trainee cohorts of large employers, and interns.The new 2026 rent index shows where the pressure is: small flats of around 30 square metres have become around 8 per cent more expensive than in 2024, the strongest segment. Flats of 90 square metres and more rose by less than 2 per cent. How to apply the rent index is explained under Nuremberg rent index.
That leads to a simple calculation: a 90 m² four-room flat earns considerably less as a whole than the same flat split into four rooms. The premium is no accident but reflects the shortage in the small segment.
The contract question decides everything else
Individual tenancy agreements per room. Each resident has their own contract for their room plus shared use of kitchen, bathroom and hallway. If someone moves out, only their contract ends; the others continue unchanged. You re-let the vacant room and set a new price in the process.
This is the financially stronger option. But it means four contracts, four deposits, four statements and, realistically, two to three re-lets a year. Without proper rental management, it quickly becomes a second job.
One joint contract with all residents. Everyone is a joint tenant and jointly and severally liable. You have one statement, one deposit, one contact. The drawback shows when residents change: every swap is a contract amendment that you and all other tenants have to agree to. If one resident refuses, the flatshare is stuck — and so are you.
Main tenant with permission to sublet. One tenant sublets the other rooms. Simplest for the landlord, but you give up the choice of residents and control of pricing. A tenant has a right to permission to sublet part of the flat anyway if they have a legitimate interest (§ 553 BGB); the only question is whether you want to make it the structure.
Pricing: all-inclusive or itemised billing
With a short average tenancy, an all-inclusive rent covering service charges is usually the more practical route. You save yourself statements for tenancies that end after eleven months, and the tenant knows what they pay.
The price is the cost risk: if prices rise, you bear it. So do not calculate on current consumption but with a margin — and check the flat rate every year against the actual costs from the WEG annual statement.
Note: with central heating, the Heating Costs Ordinance generally requires consumption-based billing, and it takes precedence over agreements to the contrary (§ 2 HeizkostenV). That applies between the flat and the owners’ association in any case. Whether and how it also applies to individual room tenants depends on the equipment — if the radiators in the rooms have consumption meters, a flat rate for heating can be challenged. Clarify this before you write the flat rate into the contracts.
What really drives the workload
Two to three re-lets a year instead of one every four years
Viewings in batches, usually in February/March and August/September
Credit checks on students — often via a guarantee or parental liability
Deposits held individually in an insolvency-proof account, separately for each contract
Handover records for each room, otherwise the condition at move-out cannot be proven
More wear in kitchen and bathroom from multiple users
Conflicts between residents, which land with you under individual contracts
The last point is the one landlords most often underestimate. With individual contracts, there is no main tenant who keeps order. Whoever mediates noise complaints, cleaning disputes and fridge conflicts is you, or your unit management. Written house rules for the flat, made part of every individual contract, save a considerable share of those conversations.
The WEG framework
Letting is generally permitted, but check the community rules (Gemeinschaftsordnung). Some contain use restrictions that limit use as a flatshare; resolutions on house rules can regulate visiting hours or the use of common areas.
Also expect a flatshare to stand out in a building with mostly owner-occupiers. More comings and goings, more bikes, more rubbish. That is not a legal problem, but it is a reason why letting owners in such buildings should cultivate their relationship with the advisory board.
When it pays off
Splitting a flat into a flatshare pays off with three or more separately usable rooms, a workable layout without walk-through rooms, and a bathroom that can serve three to four people. With two rooms, the extra income is rarely worth the extra work.
And it only pays off if someone organises the changeovers. Two months of unplanned vacancy eat up a whole year’s premium.
Ravenica manages flatshare lettings in Nuremberg with individual tenancy agreements — including selecting applicants, handovers and tracking deadlines.
Frequently asked questions
Individual tenancy agreements or one joint contract — which is better?
For landlords, usually individual contracts per room: one resident moving out does not affect the other contracts, and total income is higher. The price is more management — several statements, several deposits, several re-lets a year.
Does the rent brake (Mietpreisbremse) also apply to individual rooms?
Yes. The limit under § 556d BGB applies to residential space regardless of whether a whole flat or a single room is let. Working out the reference rent is just harder for rooms, because the rent index (Mietenspiegel) is based on whole flats. For furnished rooms, only a reasonable furniture surcharge is allowed.
May I agree an all-inclusive rent including service charges?
For cold service charges, yes — an all-inclusive rent is allowed. You then bear the full risk of rising costs, and there is no service charge statement. Heating and hot water need care: where the Heating Costs Ordinance (HeizkostenV) requires consumption-based billing, it takes precedence over a flat rate (§ 2 HeizkostenV). Have this checked before drafting the contracts.
Can I let to students for a fixed term?
Only with a permitted reason for a fixed term under § 575 BGB — personal use, planned exploitation or conversion. The end of the semester is not a valid reason. Without a valid fixed term, the contract runs indefinitely.
Who is liable if a flatshare resident does not pay?
With individual contracts, only that person. With a joint contract, all tenants are jointly and severally liable — you can demand the full rent from each of them. That is the main financial advantage of the joint contract.
About the author
Julius Launhardt
Founder, owner & managing director of Ravenica · Dipl.-Ing. (TUM)
Graduate engineer (Dipl.-Ing.) and M.Sc. in Management from the Technical University of Munich, IHK-certified property manager, TÜV-certified sustainability manager and long-standing member of the volunteer fire brigade. As founder and managing director of Ravenica in Nuremberg, he is responsible for day-to-day business, processes and long-term strategy. Knows building services, refurbishments, energy and inheritance cases first-hand, and owns several properties himself.
More about Julius Launhardt
