Reader question: Who becomes my contractual partner when the contract of a commercial intermediate tenant (Zwischenvermieter) ends?
You live in Germany and have concluded your residential tenancy agreement with a company that in turn has rented the flat. Now that that company's contract is to end, before you sign a new agreement or move out it must be examined whether §565 BGB applies. The provision protects a specific commercial subletting by a statutory succession into the existing contractual relationship. [BGB565]
Map out the contracts involved
First note the three roles: who is letting to the intermediate party? Who is that intermediate party? Who is letting you your living accommodation? Use the contract names and the actual declarations for this, rather than labelling all parties merely as management or provider.
A company that merely arranges appointments or administers in someone else’s name is not thereby already a commercial intermediate tenant. Conversely, the heading “subletting” alone does not yet establish the full legal consequence. What matters is the concrete agreement in the chain of contracts.
Clarify the agreed purpose
Section 565 paragraph 1 requires that, under its tenancy agreement, the tenant shall sublet the rented residential accommodation to a third party for residential purposes on a commercial basis. The statutory wording therefore links the purpose of the upstream contract with your residential use. [BGB565]
Request a comprehensible confirmation of this basis and the concrete information as to when and by what means the upstream contract is to be terminated. Keep any notifications already received. A mere assumption that any paid subletting is thereby covered is not sufficient for a reliable assessment.
Understand the succession effect
On the covered termination, the landlord steps into the rights and obligations arising from the tenancy between the intermediate tenant and the resident. If he concludes another contract for commercial re-letting, the provision in turn provides for the new intermediate tenant to step into the relationship with the resident. [BGB565]
The examination is therefore not merely whether you are voluntarily offered an entirely new contract. First it must be clarified whether the existing relationship is already continued by operation of law with a different contractual party. Paragraph 3 declares disadvantageous deviations to the detriment of the resident to be ineffective. [BGB565]
A hypothetical offer with new conditions
A resident receives notification that the intermediary company is leaving. At the same time a draft with a different rent and a new commencement is enclosed. He submits his previous contract and the termination notice for advice. There the statutory succession question is examined first, before he accepts the draft as the supposedly only option to remain.
The example does not confirm either the applicability in the actual individual case or a claim to any desired contractual condition. It shows why the order of the examination is decisive.
Document the practical handover
After clarification of the contractual position you need a clear contact person, a traceable payment route and the allocation of previous transactions. Check payment notifications against the confirmed chain of contracts before you switch to a new bank account. The security deposit and already accrued claims raise additional transfer questions; §565 paragraph 2 refers for this to further provisions which are not assessed individually here. [BGB565]
This article does not replace an examination of unusual operator, social or accommodation models. Its result is an evidenced answer on the possible statutory change of partner. Possession of keys or a blanket demand to conclude a new contract alone do not decide this question.