Checking the WEG annual statement (Jahresabrechnung): a checklist for owners and advisory boards

What the property manager owes you

After the end of the calendar year, the property manager must deliver three things:

1. The annual statement (Jahresabrechnung) — an income and expenditure account for the owners' association plus an individual statement for each unit.
2. The proposed resolution on the settlement balance (Abrechnungsspitze) — only the difference between advance payments made and actual costs is put to the vote.
3. The asset report (Vermögensbericht) under § 28 WEG — the balance of the maintenance reserve and a list of the association's main assets. It is made available to every owner but not voted on.

The WEG sets no statutory deadline for presenting it. In practice, proper management means within three to six months of the year end. If you still have no statement for the previous year in October, you have a problem — not a nuisance, a problem. We set out in the management contract when we present it as part of our WEG management.

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The 12-point checklist

1. Account reconciliation

Does the previous year's closing balance equal this year's opening balance? Do the balances shown for all accounts (current account, reserve account) match the bank statements as at 31 December? If something does not fit here, there is no need to check the other eleven points.

2. Cash basis

The overall statement is a pure cash-flow account. What counts is what was actually paid in and out during the year, not what would be economically attributable to it. Provisions and accruals do not belong in it. The only recognised exception is heating and hot water costs: under the HeizkostenV they are allocated by consumption, even if that does not match the year's payments.

3. Comparison with the budget

Put budget and actual figures side by side. Deviations of more than 15% in any item need explaining — not wrong, but needing an explanation.

4. Allocation keys

Are costs allocated by co-ownership share, by unit, by living space or by consumption? The community rules (Gemeinschaftsordnung) decide, unless the owners have resolved on a different key for particular costs under § 16(2) WEG. A common mistake: a different key resolved once is not carried forward in later years.

5. Maintenance reserve

The contribution to the reserve (Erhaltungsrücklage) is an expense of the association but not a cost item of the units in the narrower sense. Whether the amount matches the condition of the building can be roughly estimated with the maintenance reserve calculator. It must be identifiable as such in the statement. Withdrawals from the reserve must be shown separately — with purpose and reference to the resolution.

6. Heating costs

With central heating, costs must be billed by consumption, with between 50 and 70% allocated by consumption (§ 7 HeizkostenV). The rest is allocated by floor area or enclosed volume. Check whether the metering company's statement has been fully carried over into the WEG statement and whether the meter readings are plausible.

7. CO₂ costs

For let units, the CO₂ price must be split between landlord and tenant using the tier model of the CO2KostAufG. The WEG statement should provide the necessary figures; otherwise the letting owner cannot recharge correctly — and the tenant may cut their share of the heating costs by 3 per cent. New since the Building Modernisation Act (GModG): for gas, oil and LPG systems installed after 29 July 2026, tenant and landlord each bear half of the CO₂ costs and gas network charges from 2028, and half of the extra costs of the bio share from 2029 (§§ 5a ff. CO2KostAufG) — and for that, too, the landlord needs the figures from the statement. How recharging works is explained under service charges for rented condominium flats.

8. Maintenance and repairs

Larger measures: was there a resolution? Were they financed from the reserve or by a special levy (Sonderumlage)? Has the special levy been collected in full?

9. Hausgeld arrears

The statement should show outstanding claims. Arrears of individual owners burden everyone's liquidity. Ask about the state of the arrears process.

10. Management fees and extra fees

Are the extra fees documented and covered by the contract? A fee for a service not provided for in the management contract is not automatically owed.

11. Individual statement

Do all the individual statements add up to the overall statement? Is your co-ownership share recorded correctly? Does the individual statement include a separate list of the labour costs eligible under § 35a EStG (§ 35a EStG)?

12. Inspecting receipts

Every owner can ask to inspect the management records (§ 18(4) WEG). The advisory board should spot-check receipts before the meeting — not all of them, but the ten largest items. If the receipts are available digitally in the owners' portal, there is no need to arrange an appointment.

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The role of the advisory board

The advisory board (Verwaltungsbeirat) checks the statement and the budget before the meeting and gives an opinion on them (§ 29(2) WEG). This is not an audit and creates no guarantee liability. Since the WEG reform, unpaid board members are in any case only liable for intent and gross negligence (§ 29(3) WEG). A short written review record makes sense: what was checked, what stood out, what was clarified. It protects the board and speeds up the meeting.

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If the statement is wrong

Minor errors — arithmetic mistakes, an item booked to the wrong place — can often be cleared up with the property manager before the meeting. That is the quickest route.

Material errors make the resolution on the settlement balance open to challenge. Strict deadlines then apply:

• Filing the action: one month from the vote
• Statement of grounds: two months from the vote

Both deadlines are preclusive (§ 45 WEG). The challenge deadline calculator gives you the exact deadline for your meeting date; the process and cost risk are covered under challenging a resolution. The action is brought against the owners' association, not against the other owners and not against the property manager. The local court responsible for WEG matters where the property is located has jurisdiction.

Important: a resolution that can be challenged remains valid if nobody files in time. A resolution is void only in exceptional cases — for example, if the association had no power at all to decide the matter.

If there is no statement at all, an owner can enforce its preparation through the courts (§ 44 WEG). In practice, changing the property manager is usually the quicker answer.

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Ravenica presents annual statements in the first quarter and makes receipts available digitally in the owners' portal — inspection without an appointment.