Guides / New builds & the Abnahme
New builds & the Abnahme
Abnahme, reservations, condition records and warranty, for buyers and developers: what has to be on record on handover day.
With the Abnahme of a new build, the burden of proof passes to the buyer. For the developer that does not mean there is nothing left to prove: when a buyer reports a scratch or a dent weeks later, what counts is how the flat looked on handover day. These guides explain Abnahme, reservations, condition records and warranty, for buyers and developers alike, each with the provision in the BGB.
Guides for property developers
- Recording neighbouring buildings before construction (2026)
Evidence before excavation in Germany: why developers record neighbouring buildings first (§ 909 BGB) and when independent court evidence (§ 485 ZPO) fits.
- Handing a new-build flat to the buyer: a guide for developers (2026)
How developers document the handover of a new-build flat in Germany: Abnahmeprotokoll, reservations, every room on record, and why it matters after the Abnahme.
- Deemed acceptance of a new build: deadline and notice for developers (2026)
When a new-build flat in Germany counts as accepted: a reasonable deadline, the notice in text form for consumers, and what applies if the buyer names a defect.
- Defect reports after handover: how developers check them (2026)
How developers in Germany check a defect report after the Abnahme: burden of proof, reserved defects, repair under § 635 BGB and damage caused by third parties.
- Condition record under § 650g BGB: when the buyer refuses the Abnahme (2026)
What developers in Germany can do when a buyer refuses the Abnahme: joint or one-sided Zustandsfeststellung, its form, and the presumption for obvious defects.
Guides for new-build buyers
- New-build warranty: walk-through before the 5 years end (2026)
New-build warranty in Germany: 5 years from Abnahme (§ 634a BGB), why a defect notice does not stop the clock, and what suspends limitation (§§ 203, 204 BGB).
- Checking custom extras at the Abnahme: a buyer's guide (2026)
Custom extras in a German new build: what must be agreed in writing, who is liable if another firm does it, and how to enter them in the Abnahmeprotokoll.
- Preparing the Abnahme of a new-build flat: a buyer's checklist (2026)
How to prepare the Abnahme of your new-build flat in Germany: documents, appointment, surveyor, and what to check before the burden of proof passes to you.
- Abnahmeprotokoll: which reservations new-build buyers must enter (2026)
Which reservations belong in the Abnahmeprotokoll in Germany: known defects under § 640 Abs. 3 BGB and the contractual penalty under § 341 Abs. 3 BGB, and how to word them.
- Received a request to accept your new build: what buyers must do (2026)
Has the developer set a deadline for the Abnahme? When the flat counts as accepted in Germany (§ 640 Abs. 2 BGB) and how to respond correctly and in time.
- Defects after the Abnahme: rights of new-build buyers (2026)
A defect in your new-build flat after the Abnahme? How to report it in Germany, which deadline applies, when you may fix it yourself and what you can hold back.
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