Guides / Deposit
Deposit
The amount, holding and return of the Kaution (§ 551 BGB).
The Kaution (deposit) is capped at three months' net cold rent and must be held separately from the landlord's own assets, earning interest, all § 551 BGB. The real question starts when the tenancy ends: what may be withheld, and how long may the review take? Case law usually grants the landlord 3 to 6 months.
These guides cover both sides, from holding the deposit correctly through permissible deductions to reclaiming it, including limitation periods. What decides the outcome is the documented condition of the flat at move-in and move-out: without evidence, every deduction is just an assertion.
Guides for tenants
- New-for-old deduction: what tenants really pay for damage (2026)
Tenants in Germany pay only the current value for damage, not the price of new. How the new-for-old deduction works for floors, walls and kitchens.
- Kaution withheld for the Nebenkostenabrechnung: how much is allowed? (2026)
A landlord can keep only a reasonable part of the Kaution while the Nebenkostenabrechnung is pending. How much, for how long, and when you get the rest.
- Interest on the Kaution: what tenants get and how to check it (2026)
The interest on a rental deposit belongs to the tenant (§ 551 Abs. 3 BGB). How to claim it at move-out, how to check the amount and how it is taxed.
- Drill holes at move-out: must you fill them? (2026)
Drill holes at move-out in Germany: usual holes for shelves and pictures are normal use under the lease (§ 538 BGB). When you have to fill them and when not.
- Getting your Kaution back after leaving Germany (2026)
Moved abroad and waiting for your Kaution? Give the landlord your address and IBAN, wait out the review period, then demand payment. Court routes from abroad.
- Objecting to a Kaution settlement: model letter (2026)
Model letter (Muster) objecting to a Kaution settlement in Germany, to copy and print: dispute each item, ask for receipts, set a deadline, send it with proof.
- Kautionsbürgschaft: what tenants need to know (2026)
A Kautionsbürgschaft replaces the cash deposit: what it costs, how the provider claims money back from you at move-out and why you need move-in proof.
- Getting your Kaution back from the Hauptmieter (2026)
The deposit for a WG room is repaid by the Hauptmieter, not the owner, usually 3 to 6 months after you leave (§ 551 BGB). Plus: the cap and the interest.
- How to protect your Kaution and get all of it back (2026)
How to protect your Kaution (deposit) from move-in to refund: what to record and when, the rules for deductions, and what the landlord has to prove.
- Mietkaution: how much is allowed? (2026)
Your Mietkaution under § 551 BGB: at most three Nettokaltmieten, payable in three instalments. Where it must be held and who gets the interest.
- Reclaiming your Kaution: when do you get it back? (2026)
You usually get your Kaution back 3 to 6 months after you move out, with interest. What the landlord can keep back and how to ask for your deposit in writing.
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