May 24, 2026, 5:07 am | Read time: 3 minutes
Someone turns on the hallway light–but who bears the cost in a building where tenants and owners live under one roof? There is often a dispute over who ultimately pays the bill for common electricity. To clear up these disputes once and for all, myHOMEBOOK consulted the German Tenants’ Association.
All lights, lamps, and lighting in a multi-unit building that do not belong to an individual apartment and are located in areas used communally are considered common electricity. This can include lighting in the hallway, basement, or underground garage. All exterior lights at the front door or on the walkways to the house are also included.
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Allocation through operating costs
“As a general rule, if the lease agreement stipulates that operating costs are allocated, the costs for common electricity can also be distributed to tenants,” explains Jutta Hartmann, spokesperson for the German Tenants’ Association, when asked by myHOMEBOOK. “The distribution is usually based on living space or the number of people.”
However, certain areas are not used by all tenants, such as when a resident does not have a parking space in the building’s underground garage. “In this case, the costs for lighting cannot be allocated to all tenants.” This happens repeatedly. Some courts have now ruled that in such cases, only the tenants who actually use the underground garage with their vehicle pay.
Regarding common electricity, there is a belief among tenants that if owners are part of the community, they are not included in the costs for common electricity. This is incorrect.
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Situation differs for tenants and owners
As always, the situation is complicated. Tenants pay the costs for common electricity proportionally through the utility or operating cost statement. Owners pay a so-called house fee. This term is not legally defined. However, Section 16, Paragraph 2 of the Condominium Act (WEG) states: “The costs of the community of condominium owners, particularly for management and communal use of communal property, must be borne by each condominium owner in proportion to their share.” This means that not only tenants pay for common electricity, but all residents, including owners.
Due to the different collection of costs for common electricity for tenants and owners, errors can occur in the operating cost statement. Owners may pay their share of common electricity directly to the management or landlord through the house fee. In that case, owners do not appear proportionally in the operating cost statement.
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Check the statement if in doubt
Ideally, a corresponding note should inform tenants about the separate payment of the owner’s share. Otherwise, it may appear that only tenants bear the costs for common electricity. Worse still, the shares of owners and tenants may not have been properly separated by the landlord or management. In the end, only one party, namely the tenants, may actually pay for the common electricity.
“Tenants should always check the operating cost statement. Is the common electricity correctly listed? Was it distributed transparently? Objections to incorrect statements can be raised within twelve months, and overpaid costs can be reclaimed. The local tenants’ association is happy to help with the review,” recommends Jutta Hartmann, spokesperson for the German Tenants’ Association.