Self-manage your WEG or hand it over? Effort, liability and costs compared honestly

The question usually comes up for one of two reasons

Either the owners’ association has had enough of its manager – too expensive, too slow, too little interest in the building. Or it simply can’t find one, because managers are turning down small buildings right now (more in Can’t find a property manager?). Either way, the thought is obvious: we’ll do it ourselves.

That is permitted and can work well. So that it doesn’t collapse after the first water damage, you should honestly work out beforehand what it involves.

What the law allows

The law doesn’t require a manager. There are two forms of self-management:

Without a manager. All owners represent the association jointly (§ 9b(1) WEG). For every contract, every transfer and every bank query, everyone may have to be involved. That is manageable with three owners, already tedious with eight.

With an owner as manager. The association appoints a co-owner as manager. They then have all the powers and duties of a manager. Normally, every owner can demand the appointment of a certified manager. There is one exception: if there are fewer than nine separately owned units, an owner has been appointed manager and fewer than a third of the owners demand a certified manager (§ 19(2) no. 6 WEG). Note: separately owned units such as underground parking spaces count too.

The owner-manager usually doesn’t need a trade licence under § 34c GewO, because they aren’t acting commercially for third parties.

Which duties remain

Self-management doesn’t mean fewer duties – just the same duties in your own hands:

The annual statement is the biggest task. It must not only add up but be structured so that owners who let can derive their tenants’ utility cost statement from it. What a good statement looks like is shown in our annual statement checklist.

The liability question

This is often underestimated. Whoever is manager is liable for breaches of duty – whether paid or not. Typical cases:

• An insurance claim is reported too late, and the insurer doesn’t pay.
• An inspection deadline is missed, and an accident happens later.
• A resolution is prepared incorrectly and overturned after a challenge – someone ends up bearing the legal costs.
• A deadline towards a contractor or developer passes.

A commercial manager must have professional liability insurance of at least 500,000 euros per claim for such cases. The owner-manager doesn’t automatically have this. If you take on the role, talk to your insurer about financial loss liability insurance (Vermögensschadenhaftpflicht) – and have the association confirm by resolution that it will pay the premium.

What self-management really saves

The savings are real. According to the industry barometer of the managers’ association VDIV, associations with up to eleven units paid an average of 35.84 euros net per unit per month in 2025. For an association with six flats, that is just over 2,500 euros a year – before extra fees. Many managers also charge minimum fees per building.

Set against this: the owner-manager’s time, an insurance premium, possibly software and the cost of a service provider for the statement. And one factor that appears in no table: what happens if the owner-manager falls ill, moves away or loses interest? The association is then often left without a manager, unprepared. What to do in that case is explained in our article WEG without a manager.

When self-management works well

If several points don’t apply, professional management is usually the better choice – not because owners couldn’t do it, but because the risk and time aren’t in a good ratio to the savings. A common middle ground: the association manages itself but has bookkeeping and the annual statement prepared externally.

Back to professional management

Many associations manage themselves for a few years and then hand over again, for example when a major renovation is due or the owner-manager sells. That isn’t a failure. Make sure the records are handed over in good order – register of resolutions, statements, contracts, bank statements. The more complete the package, the more likely a manager is to say yes. What associations should check when choosing is covered in our article on the certified manager.

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Thinking about handing over management, or want to know what professional management would cost for your building? Ravenica is a property management company for Nuremberg, Fürth and Erlangen. Request a no-obligation quote – then you have a real number for your decision.