The house charge account - What owners need to know

The statement of charges provides apartment owners with information on all payments made by the WEG. In this way, you can find out whether you still have to make additional payments for operating costs or whether you will receive refunds. The property management is responsible for the preparation of the statement of charges.

What are the items of the house charge statement?

The condominium fee statement provides an overview of all income and expenses of the condominium owners' association and lists transparently whether and which additional payments or reimbursements are due to the owners. In short, the statement of condominium expenses is, so to speak, a statement of ancillary costs for owners.

A formal template for the house charge statement is not prescribed, which is why the house charge statements can always look a little different from property management to property management. However, the following contents must be mentioned mandatory on a house money account:

- All expenses and income of the WEG for the business year

- Established reserves and account balances

- Individual statements for each condominium owner

- The distribution key used

The individual items are apportioned to the owners according to a certain distribution key in order to determine the individual house payments.

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Who pays the house service charge?

The condominium owners' association pays the house charges on a pro rata basis. The respective share results from the so-called co-ownership shares (MEA) of each owner. In some cases, a different distribution key has been decided in the past, which is used for the house charge settlement. You will always find the distribution key used listed in your statement of property charges.

The property management is responsible for the preparation of the statement of property charges

Pursuant to § 28 WEG, the property management of the WEG is responsible for preparing the statement of property charges and presenting it at the owners ' meeting. The property management must also be available for any queries. The owners receive both an overall statement and their individual statement. The owners can see from the individual statement whether there are any additional payments or repayments.

Tip: If your property management company is repeatedly late with the preparation of the statement of fees or if the statement of fees often contains serious errors, this is a good reason to change the property management company. Delayed property fee statements entitle WEGs to terminate the contract of the property management company with immediate effect. 

How much is the house money?

The amount of the housing charge varies and depends on the individual characteristics of the property. These aspects include the energy source, the state of renovation, the location of the building, the region, the year of construction, the size and many other factors. The presence of special equipment, such as elevators or surveillance cameras, can also have an impact on the house charge.

No statutory deadline for the statement of house charges, but usually by the end of June at the latest

There is no statutory deadline for the preparation of the statement of property charges. According to the law on the WEG annual statement, it only has to be prepared "after the expiry of a reasonable period after the end of the business year". In most cases, we are talking about three to six months. After all, the owners must be given enough time to prepare the service charge statement for the tenants before the end of the year.

As a rule, you will receive your statement of property charges together with the invitation to the annual owners' meeting. At the owners' meeting, you can then pass resolutions on the statement of the property charges and the maintenance reserve. The additional payments and refunds are not due until after the resolution on the statement of maintenance costs has been passed. Find out here Our 5 best tips for saving on building maintenance costs

What to do in case of late and/or erroneous house charge statements?

One of the statutory duties of every property management company is to prepare an annual statement of property charges and present it for resolution at the owners' meeting. This is regulated in § 28 para. 3 WEG Act. If your current property management does not comply with this duty, this is a reason for termination without notice. We will be happy to advise you individually on this. As a condominium owner, you have a claim to the presentation of the statement of property charges, which you can assert in court in case of doubt.

In order to rule out the possibility of an erroneous house charge statement, you may check the contents for the following points:

• Do the expenses and bills actually belong to your COA?
• Is the recipient of the invoice correct?
• Are the figures right?
• Do the costs match the invoices?
• Have the entries been assigned to the correct G/L accounts?
• Was the offered discount taken advantage of if the order was placed quickly (cash discount reductions)?
• Are there still allocable costs?
• Were non-apportionable costs apportioned?
• Are the advance payments correct?

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