Declaration of division and conversion ban in Berlin

Does dividing a multi-family house in Berlin need approval?

The declaration of division is the deed by which the owner splits the plot into co-ownership shares. Each share is linked to the separate ownership of a flat. The owner makes the declaration to the land registry (Grundbuchamt) (§ 8 para. 1 WEG, Condominium Act); in practice a notary's office drafts it. After registration, the land registry opens a separate condominium land register (Wohnungsgrundbuch) for each share (§ 7 para. 1 WEG). Only then do the units appear in the land register as owner-occupied flats.

“Conversion ban” is an imprecise term: there is no outright ban without exceptions, but a requirement for approval.

What § 250 BauGB regulates and how long it applies

§ 250 BauGB (Federal Building Code) is headed “Formation of condominium ownership in areas with tight housing markets”. It only takes effect if a federal state has designated such areas by ordinance. Berlin has done so: the ordinance of 11 November 2025 (Law and Ordinance Gazette 2025, page 576) designates the whole state of Berlin as an area with a tight housing market. It entered into force on 1 January 2026 and expires at the end of 31 December 2030.

Federal law sets this end date: an ordinance under § 250 para. 1 sentence 3 BauGB must expire no later than the end of 31 December 2030. Current law provides for no longer period.

The approval requirement covers the creation or division of condominium ownership and partial ownership in residential buildings that already existed when the first ordinance came into force. Two cases are excluded:

• Areas where additional living space is created, for example through a loft conversion.
• Buildings with no more than five flats. The law allows the states to set a number between three and 15; the Berlin ordinance names no different number, so five applies.

Indirect routes also require approval (§ 250 para. 6 BauGB). This covers long-term residential rights under §§ 30 and 31 WEG (Condominium Act) as well as co-ownership in fractional shares with assigned rooms and an excluded right to dissolve the community.

The Senate Department's monitoring shows how strongly the rule curbs conversions. In 2024, 142 flats were converted under § 250 BauGB (Federal Building Code); in the first half of 2025, the figure was 57.

When approval must be granted

§ 250 para. 3 BauGB (Federal Building Code) names five cases in which approval must be granted:

• The plot belongs to an estate, and co-heirs or legatees are to receive condominium ownership.
• The condominium ownership is sold to family members of the owner for their own use.
• The condominium ownership is sold to at least two thirds of the tenants for their own use.
• Refraining from the division can no longer reasonably be expected, even taking the public interest into account.
• Without approval, claims to transfer held by third parties and previously secured by a priority notice could not be fulfilled.

Outside these cases, approval may only be refused if this is necessary to ensure an adequate supply of rental housing to the population (§ 250 para. 4 BauGB). It can then also be granted subject to a condition.

For sales to family members, from estates and to tenants, the approval can provide that the later sale of the individual flats must also be approved. This reservation is entered in the condominium land register (Wohnungsgrundbuch) and lapses as soon as the ordinance expires (§ 250 para. 3 sentences 2 to 4 BauGB, Federal Building Code). Buyers see the note in the land register (Grundbuch).

Milieu protection and § 250: which rule applies where

In social preservation areas (Milieuschutz; preservation statute under § 172 para. 1 sentence 1 no. 2 BauGB, Federal Building Code), demolition, alteration and change of use of buildings need approval. The federal states can also make the creation of condominium ownership there subject to approval by ordinance (§ 172 para. 1 sentence 4 BauGB). Berlin has used this since 14 March 2015; the ordinance was most recently reissued on 18 February 2025.

The relationship to § 250 is set by law: within the geographical scope of the ordinance under § 250, it takes precedence over ordinances under § 172 (§ 250 para. 7 BauGB, Federal Building Code). This does not apply where no approval requirement exists under § 250, for example for buildings with up to five flats. There the approval requirement under the conversion ordinance 2025 remains in place (§ 172 para. 1 sentence 4 BauGB, GVBl. 2025 p. 129); it applies from 13 March 2025 until the end of 12 March 2030. Approval may only be refused if the composition of the resident population is to be preserved for special urban planning reasons (§ 172 para. 4 sentence 1 BauGB).

Independently of this, structural changes to the building may require approval in a social preservation area (Milieuschutz), and within the area of a preservation statute the municipality has a general right of first refusal (§ 24 para. 1 no. 4 BauGB, Federal Building Code). Our page Milieu protection map Berlin shows whether your house lies in such an area. For the right of first refusal of tenants and the municipality, read Tenants' right of first refusal.

From application to land register

The application goes to the planning office of the district where the building stands (§ 2 of the Berlin ordinance). A negative certificate (Negativattest), meaning confirmation that no approval is required, can be requested informally from the Treptow-Köpenick district office. The Senate Department gives no fixed processing time.

The land registry (Grundbuchamt) may only register the division if it has proof of approval or of the absence of an approval requirement (§ 250 para. 5 BauGB, Federal Building Code). If the house has no more than five flats, the Treptow-Köpenick district office issues a negative certificate on request for submission to the land registry; in other districts, ask about the procedure. With the registration, the approval is deemed granted.

Certificate of separate completeness and division plan

Separate ownership is only to be granted if the flats are self-contained (§ 3 para. 3 WEG, Condominium Act). Two documents must therefore accompany the registration consent (§ 7 para. 4 WEG): a division plan, meaning a building drawing of the division stamped by the building authority, and the building authority's certificate that the conditions of separate completeness are met.

In Berlin, the district's building and housing supervision office issues the certificate of separate completeness (Abgeschlossenheitsbescheinigung). The Reinickendorf district office names these requirements:

• Each unit must be self-contained, closed off by walls and ceilings.
• Access must be possible via the common property, for example the stairwell or a corridor.
• Rooms outside the flat, for example cellar rooms, must be lockable.
• Garage parking spaces only count as separate with permanent markings.

The exact documents required are listed in the information sheet of the office concerned. Before the notary appointment, check that each flat has its own access from the stairwell.

Consequences for tenants and buyers

If condominium ownership is created for let flats after the flat was let to the tenant, this has two consequences for the sale.

• Right of first refusal: If you sell the flat to a third party, the tenant is entitled to buy it first (§ 577 BGB, German Civil Code). This does not apply to sales to family or household members. More under Tenants' right of first refusal.
• Restriction on termination: The buyer can only rely on personal use or termination for economic exploitation three years after the sale. The state can extend this period by ordinance to up to ten years (§ 577a BGB, German Civil Code). Berlin has done so: the period is ten years (Termination Protection Clause Ordinance of 13 June 2023, GVBl. p. 228, valid until 30 September 2033).

Owners of a whole house do not have to divide it. Selling the whole building to an investor works without a declaration of division and without approval under § 250. Which route yields more depends on the number of flats, the tenant structure and the likelihood of approval. Our property valuation gives an indication; for selling as a whole, read Sell an apartment building.

Reading the declaration of division when buying a flat

Anyone buying or selling an owner-occupied flat should know the declaration of division and the division plan. Look out for these points:

• Separate ownership and common property: Rooms are separate ownership; parts needed for the building's structure or safety remain common (§ 5 WEG, Condominium Act). This determines what you are responsible for alone and what the community bears.
• Co-ownership share: Use and, unless otherwise agreed, costs follow the share (§ 16 WEG, Condominium Act).
• Special-use rights: Areas of the common property, for example a garden or parking space, can be assigned to a flat by agreement as a special-use right (§ 5 para. 4, § 10 para. 3 WEG, Condominium Act). Check whether this appears in the plan and in the land register (Grundbuch).
• Agreements between the owners: They only apply against a buyer if they are entered in the land register (Grundbuch) as part of the content of the separate ownership (§ 10 para. 3 WEG, Condominium Act).
• Restriction on sale: The declaration of division can provide that a sale needs the consent of other owners or a third party. Without consent the sale is invalid (§ 12 WEG, Condominium Act).
• Approval note: If the condominium land register (Wohnungsgrundbuch) contains a reservation under § 250 BauGB (Federal Building Code), your sale also needs approval.

For service charges, reserves and levies before a sale, read Service charge and special levy when selling. What other papers buyers expect is covered under Documents for selling a property. The overall process is described in Selling a property in Berlin.

Sources

• § 250 Baugesetzbuch (BauGB, Federal Building Code), formation of condominium ownership in areas with tight housing markets
• § 172 BauGB (Federal Building Code), preservation statute
• § 24 BauGB (Federal Building Code), general right of first refusal
• § 3 Condominium Act (WEG), contractual grant of special ownership
• § 5 WEG (Condominium Act), subject matter and content of separate ownership
• § 7 WEG (Condominium Act), land register provisions, division plan, separate completeness
• § 8 WEG (Condominium Act), division by the owner
• § 10 WEG (Condominium Act), general principles, effect against successors in title
• Section 12 WEG, restriction on disposal
• Section 16 WEG, benefits and costs
• § 577 BGB, tenant's right of first refusal
• § 577a BGB (German Civil Code), restriction on termination where flats are converted
• Termination Protection Clause Ordinance Berlin of 13 June 2023 (submission to the House of Representatives)
• Berlin Senate Department, conversion ordinance under § 250 BauGB (Federal Building Code)
• Ordinance of 11 November 2025, full text (GVBl. 2025, p. 576)
• Official Gazette for Berlin, statement of reasons for the ordinance of 11 November 2025
• Berlin Senate Department, monitoring of the conversion ordinances, annual report 2024 (press release of 25 September 2025)
• Treptow-Köpenick district office, conversion into residential or partial ownership under § 250 BauGB (Federal Building Code)
• Reinickendorf district office, separate completeness under the WEG (Condominium Act)