Start a flat share in Germany: steps and checklist

The order in which a flat share comes together

Most people who start a flat share from scratch look for flatmates first and the flat second. You then apply as a group and know your budget and expectations before the first viewing. If you are taking over a flat where someone already lives, the order is reversed. The table shows what comes up in each phase and which step on this page covers it. What to do in the first weeks after move-in is in the moving-in checklist.

1. Find the right flatmates

It matters less whether you are best friends than whether you share similar ideas about living together. Talk about quiet hours, guests, cleanliness, smoking, pets, and whether you want a practical arrangement or shared evenings. How to find and choose the right people is covered in find a flatmate. Also ask how long each person plans to stay: a flat where everyone is planning for two years works differently from one with short-term subtenants.

Budget and flat size before you search

Work backwards. What each person can pay per month for the Warmmiete (rent including heating and other utilities), multiplied by the number of people, gives the ceiling for the flat. Four people at €400 each means €1,600 all-in. Electricity, internet and the Rundfunkbeitrag (the German broadcasting fee) usually come on top. For the running costs to expect, see utilities and internet in a flat share. Everyone needs a room of their own. If you also want a shared living room, look for a flat with one room more than you have people. With a large kitchen-diner, one room per person is often enough. From four people upwards it is worth asking about a second bathroom. If you want shares based on room size rather than an equal split, the rent split calculator works them out.

2. Search for a flat and apply together

If you search as a group, present yourselves to landlords as one. Prepare a short flat-share profile: who you are, how long you want to stay and which type of tenancy you have in mind. Landlords often ask each person for a Schufa credit report, proof of income and a Mietschuldenfreiheitsbescheinigung (confirmation that you have no rent arrears), so ask in advance what they need. At the viewing, ask how many bathrooms there are, where the electricity and gas meters are, and whether the landlord allows a joint contract, individual contracts or subletting (Untermiete).

Viewing: is the flat suitable for a flat share?

A flat can be big enough and still not suit a flat share. At the viewing (Besichtigung), check whether every room has its own door or whether you have to walk through one room to reach another. See whether the rooms are of similar size; if they differ clearly, it is worth splitting the rent by room size. Ask yourselves whether the kitchen and bathroom will cope with everyone in the morning and whether there is a separate toilet. If there is only one balcony, cellar room or parking space, settle beforehand who uses it. Also get the landlord’s permission to use the flat as a flat share in writing.

3. Choose the right type of tenancy

There are three common set-ups in a flat share. With a joint main tenancy (Hauptmietvertrag), everyone signs and is jointly liable for the whole rent. One person can only leave with the consent of the landlord and the other tenants. With a subletting arrangement, one person is the Hauptmieter (main tenant), rents the flat and sublets rooms. They carry the risk and need the landlord’s permission, but have more say over who moves in. With individual tenancy agreements, each person has their own contract with the landlord for their room. Which one fits depends on how settled the flat share is. The differences are set out in the guide to the flat-share tenancy agreement. If in doubt, a Mieterverein (tenants’ association) can advise you.

4. Agree the deposit and the handover

The Kaution (deposit) may be at most three months’ Kaltmiete (rent excluding utilities), and can be paid in three monthly instalments. Write down who paid which share, so it is clear who is owed what when someone leaves. At the handover, every room belongs in the handover record (Übergabeprotokoll), ideally with photos of any damage and the meter readings for electricity, gas and water.

5. A flat agreement between yourselves

Alongside the tenancy agreement, a short agreement between flatmates is worth having. It covers what the contract with the landlord leaves open: rent shares per room, utilities, electricity and internet, the cleaning rota, a shared kitty, guests, quiet hours and what happens when someone moves out, such as how early they tell the others and who helps find a replacement. The agreement is an understanding between flatmates and does not change the tenancy agreement. A short model: “We, [names], live at [address] from [date]. Rent: [split]. Fixed costs: [list]. Cleaning rota: [rhythm]. Guests: [rule]. Anyone moving out tells the others [number] weeks ahead and helps find a successor. After three months we review this agreement.” Suggestions for individual rules are in house rules. In ManaWG, you can record the agreement as a noticeboard post of the type Decision, and the others react with “Works for me”.

An exit plan before you sign

Agree on moving out while everyone still gets on well. Besides the notice period, note whether everyone has a say in choosing the successor. Settle the deposit too: it stays with the landlord until the tenancy ends. Often the successor pays their share of the deposit directly to the person leaving, and you note that in the agreement. Also decide what happens if someone is away for a long time, for example after losing a job or on a semester abroad: who advances the rent, and how is it made up? How to treat time away fairly is covered in its own guide, and the moving-out checklist shows what comes up when someone leaves.

6. Register and set up contracts

After moving in, everyone has to register their address with the local citizens’ office (Bürgeramt) within two weeks. This is the Anmeldung, and it needs a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung (landlord’s confirmation of move-in) issued by the landlord, or by the main tenant if you sublet. The guide to the Anmeldung explains how. Electricity and internet usually run in one person’s name, and you split the costs. The Rundfunkbeitrag is due once per flat, not per person: one person registers, and the others deregister, quoting that person’s contribution number. Everyone should have their own personal liability insurance (Haftpflichtversicherung) and check whether their contents insurance (Hausratversicherung) covers a flat share.

7. Settle the money

Decide how the rent is divided (equally or by room size, with the rent split calculator to show the figures), who holds which contracts and what you buy together. Whoever pays should reliably get the money back without having to ask each time. With the flat-share app ManaWG you enter rent, electricity and internet once as fixed costs and add shared purchases as they happen. The app shows balances and settlement suggestions, and you make the transfers yourselves.

8. Agree on the initial equipment

Agree what is bought together (washing machine, vacuum cleaner, kitchen appliances, cleaning supplies) and who owns it when someone moves out. For expensive items, a simple note of who paid how much helps.

What starting up costs

Settle before signing who can pay how much at move-in, because the deposit and the first rent are due straight away. How to share the running costs afterwards is covered in splitting flat costs.

9. Organise the household and the cleaning rota

Agree on a cleaning rota with specific tasks and fixed cycles, for example bathroom weekly, kitchen weekly, hallway every two weeks, rubbish as needed. The guide to making a cleaning rota shows how, and a printable cleaning rota template helps you get going. A shared shopping list for things everyone needs stops three people buying washing-up liquid while nobody buys toilet paper. You can share both in ManaWG without anyone maintaining the list by hand.

10. Write down the house rules

Put the most important agreements in writing, such as quiet hours, how to handle visitors and overnight guests, shared rooms and what to do in a dispute. A template to adapt is in house rules. The point is not paragraphs, it is that nobody can say later that they were never told. The noticeboard in ManaWG suits this, because decisions stay visible and do not disappear in the chat.

11. Set a date for the flat meeting

Half an hour once a month is enough. You settle the balances in the shared expenses; the ManaWG monthly statement arrives by email at the start of the month and shows totals per category and settlement suggestions. You also go through dates in the shared calendar and check whether any of your rules need adjusting. How to raise conflicts is covered in resolving flatmate conflicts. People who talk regularly rarely need to escalate.

When someone moves out or does not pay

With a joint main tenancy, each person is liable to the landlord for the whole rent, and someone can only leave with the consent of the landlord and the other tenants (see the table above). With subletting, the main tenant carries the risk if a room stands empty. If a legitimate interest in subletting part of the flat arises after the contract is signed, the tenant can, under certain conditions, demand permission (§ 553 para. 1 BGB). If someone is not paying, raise it early and agree how you will settle the amounts. More in debts between flatmates, asking a flatmate to leave and subletting a room.

The checklist to tick off

1. Flatmates found and expectations discussed
2. Application documents ready for each person
3. Type of tenancy chosen and tenancy agreement signed
4. Deposit paid, shares noted down
5. Handover record with photos and meter readings
6. Flat agreement written down and confirmed by everyone
7. Everyone registered within two weeks
8. Electricity, internet and Rundfunkbeitrag in one person’s name, costs shared
9. Liability and contents insurance checked
10. Rent split and fixed costs agreed
11. Initial equipment agreed
12. Cleaning rota, shopping list and house rules set up