Maklerprovision and the Bestellerprinzip: Who Pays the Agent

One of the better surprises for newcomers to Munich is that you usually do not pay the estate agent. Since 2015, German law has put broker fees on the party who hires the broker, which in practice is almost always the landlord. Knowing exactly how this works — and where the limits sit — protects you from one of the more common attempts to overcharge tenants. Here is the rule in plain terms.

The Bestellerprinzip in one sentence

The Bestellerprinzip (the "who orders, pays" principle), in force since June 2015 under the Wohnungsvermittlungsgesetz, means whoever commissions the Makler (estate agent) pays the Maklerprovision (agent commission). For rentals, the landlord is nearly always the one who hires the agent to find a tenant, so the landlord pays. As a tenant responding to an advertised flat, you typically owe nothing to the agent at all.

When a tenant actually pays

There is one main situation where you do owe commission: when you hire the agent yourself — for example, you engage a search agent to find you a flat that is not publicly listed, and they then secure it for you. In that case the fee is capped by law at two months' Kaltmiete (cold rent) plus 19% VAT. On a €1,150 cold rent, that ceiling is about €2,737 including VAT. Running costs are excluded from the calculation.

Commission is success-only

A Maklerprovision is an Erfolgshonorar (success fee). The agent earns it only if their work actually leads to a signed lease; no contract means no fee. If the new lease merely continues, extends or renews an existing tenancy, or if the agent is also the owner, manager or landlord of the flat, no commission is due even if a contract is signed. These exceptions catch out tenants who assume any agent involvement triggers a payment.

Spot the word that saves you money

Most Munich listings you reply to will say provisionsfrei (commission-free), confirming you pay no agent fee. Treat its absence as a prompt to ask directly: "Who commissioned you, and is there any fee for me?" A legitimate agent will answer clearly. Because the landlord pays, the agent works for the landlord — useful to remember at viewings, where being easy and reliable matters more than trying to win the agent over personally.

Watch for illegal attempts to charge you

Some landlords or agents still try to shift the cost onto tenants, and such clauses are simply unenforceable. Be alert to a "finder's fee", an inflated Abstandszahlung (a payment to take over fittings) that really hides a commission, or pressure to pay the agent before signing. You never owe a broker fee for a flat the landlord advertised. If pushed, you can decline, point to the Bestellerprinzip, and walk away — or seek advice from a tenants' association such as the Mieterverein München.

Keep the paperwork clean

If you do legitimately owe a fee because you hired the agent, get the agreement in writing, confirm the amount and that VAT is included, and pay only after the lease is signed. Keep the invoice; a tenant who relocates for work can sometimes claim it against tax. For everyone else, the headline is simpler: do not pay an agent for a flat you found through a normal listing.

What about furnished or temporary lets?

The rules shift slightly outside a standard unfurnished lease. The Bestellerprinzip still covers residential lettings, and the expat-focused furnished platforms generally charge tenants no agent commission, billing the landlord or using a service-fee model instead — always read what their fee actually covers. Commercial leases are a different world: the principle does not apply, fees are freely negotiated, and two to three net cold rents plus VAT is common. The clearest case where you, the tenant, legitimately pay is hiring a relocation or search agent yourself to find an off-market flat. Whenever a fee is genuinely owed, insist on a written agreement stating the amount, that 19% VAT is included, and that payment falls due only once the lease is signed — and keep the invoice, since a work-related move can sometimes be set against tax.

The Bestellerprinzip is one of the clearest wins for tenants in the German system. Unless you personally hired a search agent, a Munich flat should cost you nothing in commission — so look for "provisionsfrei", question any fee you are asked for, and never hand money to a broker for a flat the landlord put on the market. That alone can save you thousands at move-in.