The Verwaltungsbeirat: duties, rights and liability of a WEG advisory board

Why the board exists

A German owners’ association (Wohnungseigentümergemeinschaft, WEG — comparable to an HOA or a block management company’s client) has two bodies: the owners’ meeting, which decides, and the property manager (Verwalter), who executes. Between them is a gap. The meeting usually convenes once a year and cannot check every invoice. The manager does not supervise itself.

The advisory board (Verwaltungsbeirat) closes that gap. Under § 29 WEG, it supports and supervises the manager in carrying out its duties. It is not a ceremonial role; it is the only ongoing oversight an association has between two meetings.

Election, size, term

The board is appointed by resolution of the owners’ meeting, by simple majority. Only unit owners are eligible. Since the 2020 reform, the number of members is open: the meeting decides whether it is one, three or five. With several members, it also appoints a chair and a deputy, or leaves that to the board.

There is no statutory term. Unless the resolution limits it, the board stays in office until removed or until it resigns. It can be removed at any time, also by simple majority and without cause. Many associations limit the term to two or three years so the question comes up regularly.

The duties in detail

Reviewing the budget and annual statement. Both should be reviewed by the board and accompanied by its written opinion before the meeting votes (§ 29(2) sentence 2 WEG). This is the most important task — and the one most often done superficially.

Representing the association towards the manager. The board’s chair represents the association in dealings with the manager (§ 9b(2) WEG). In practice, the chair signs the management contract once the meeting has approved it, and pursues claims against the manager if the association resolves to do so. Without a board, the meeting authorises another owner.

Calling a meeting if the manager fails to. If there is no manager, or the manager refuses in breach of duty to call a meeting, the board’s chair or deputy may do so (§ 24(3) WEG). In practice, this is the lever an association uses to vote out an inactive manager; more in property manager not responding.

Minutes. The minutes of the meeting are signed by the meeting chair, one owner and — where a board exists — its chair or deputy (§ 24(6) WEG).

What the board is not

The board is not an executive committee. It cannot instruct the manager, award contracts or replace resolutions. A board member who gives a contractor the “go-ahead” acts without authority — and potentially at their own risk.

Nor does it have special access rights. Every owner has the right to inspect the association’s records (§ 18(4) WEG). For a serious review, however, the board needs access to bank statements, invoices and contracts. A manager who makes that access difficult is already telling you something.

Reviewing the accounts in practice

An opinion on the annual statement is only worth as much as the review behind it. At a minimum, a board should work through these points:

You will find the full list in our annual statement checklist. A board that finds discrepancies puts them in its opinion — and, if in doubt, recommends approving the statement only once they are resolved.

Liability and insurance

An unpaid board member is only liable for intent and gross negligence (§ 29(3) WEG). That protects against ordinary oversights, not against signing without looking.

If board members receive genuine remuneration, the privilege falls away. Whether a flat expense allowance already removes it is disputed; reimbursing documented expenses is unproblematic. Associations that want to pay their board should keep this in mind.

Two tools have proven themselves. First, financial-loss liability insurance for the board, taken out by resolution at the association’s expense. Second, the annual discharge (Entlastung) by resolution, through which the association waives known or recognisable claims against the board.

The board’s role in choosing a manager

When a change of manager is due, the board usually prepares it: collecting offers, holding interviews, making a recommendation to the meeting. This is not a statutory duty. When appointing a new manager, however, the courts generally expect the owners to have competing offers so they have a real choice (§ 26 WEG).

How to set offers side by side is covered in comparing property management offers, and what matters in the contract in checking the management contract. Do not compare the base fee alone. What matters is the list of special fees, when the annual statement is delivered, how reachable the manager is day to day, and digital access to documents. Since December 2023, every owner can also demand a certified manager.

Templates for the agenda request, the demand for a meeting and the resolutions are in our templates for changing your manager. How the change itself works is covered in our article on changing your WEG manager in Nuremberg. Material for your association is on our page about changing property managers.

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At Ravenica, the advisory board inspects bank statements, invoices and contracts digitally, not by appointment at our office. Reviewing the accounts becomes an evening’s work.