A tenant wants to take in Ukrainians in his spacious Munich apartment. He is suing against the rejection with the support of the tenants’ association. The district court found him wrong. The landlord cannot be forced to take the interests of third parties into account.
According to the Munich district court, tenants cannot demand that their landlords agree to take in Ukrainian refugees. There is a lack of a “legitimate interest”, as the district court decided. The mere desire for humanitarian aid is not enough. The Munich Tenants’ Association, which supports the tenants, wants the dispute to be “clarified by the highest court”. (Az: 411 C 10539/22)
So far, the plaintiff has only lived with his two children in a 240 square meter apartment in the Munich district. According to the lease, subletting was largely excluded. Nevertheless, in March 2022, the man took in two women and a child from Ukraine for two months. Because of the limited duration, the landlords agreed to this. After that, the tenant took in a 73-year-old woman from Ukraine and her 15-year-old granddaughter. Here the tenants demanded that the refugees leave the apartment within three months. With his lawsuit, the tenant demands approval.
But according to the judgment of the Munich district court, the landlords do not have to give their consent. It is true that the contractual clause, which largely excludes subletting, is ineffective. However, the landlord would only have to agree if the tenant can prove a “legitimate interest”. That is what is missing here. As possible reasons, the district court called the move out of a roommate or the admission of a caregiver. But there are no such reasons here. From the outset, the tenant only rented the large house for himself and his two minor children. There have been no significant changes in personal circumstances since the start of the tenancy.
The district court emphasized that legitimate reasons must lie in the person of the tenant. “Circumstances of third parties, such as refugees,” on the other hand, would not have to be recognized as a “legitimate interest”. The legal regulations on subletting were not created “so that the tenant can protect the interests of other people”. In addition, tenants must always obtain the consent of the landlord in advance. The personal ties that have developed between the tenant and the refugees in the meantime are therefore irrelevant. It is also not a question of a “personal visit” that requires a permit, because the planned stay of the Ukrainians is not limited.
The Munich Tenants’ Association now wants to continue the legal dispute. “After examining the verdict, we will continue to work to ensure that humanitarian aid in an emergency is a legitimate interest,” said the association’s chairwoman, Beatrix Zurek.
