Overview
- A large share of bills for buildings with central heating comes from Grundkosten, which are calculated by a tenant’s share of the building’s total costs rather than by individual meter readings.
- Model calculations show that a tenant with low measured consumption can still face a big bill because Grundkosten are applied by floor area and rise when the building’s total heating bill rises.
- Tenants have concrete legal safeguards: landlords must send annual statements within twelve months of the billing period and tenants may request Belegeinsicht to check invoices and meter data.
- Not every cost may be passed to tenants; repairs, administration and general maintenance are usually non-umlagefähig and tenants should verify living area, distribution keys and credited advance payments.
- Practical help is available through tools like the Deutscher Mieterbund’s BetriebskostenCheck, consumer advice centres and local tenant associations to verify calculations and to file timely written objections.