On 8 February 2026, Federal Minister of Justice Stefanie Hubig published the draft law “Mietrecht II”, which provides for further amendments to social tenancy law. The aim is to counteract the rapid increase in rents and to improve the protection of tenants. The key planned changes are summarised below:
Cap on Indexed Rents
In areas with tight housing markets, increases in indexed rents are to be limited to a maximum of 3.5 percent per year (Section 557b German Civil Code (BGB)). This is intended to prevent tenants from being excessively burdened by sharp inflationary surges.
New Rules for Furnishing Surcharges
Landlords will in future be required to state the furnishing surcharge separately. The surcharges must be reasonable and based on the current value of the furniture. For fully furnished apartments, a flat rate of 5 percent of the net cold rent is envisaged; a higher surcharge is only permissible if justified by the value of the furnishings.
Maximum Term for Short-Term Rental Contracts
Short-term rental contracts may in future only be concluded for a maximum of six months and will continue to be permitted only in cases of special need on the part of the tenant. This is intended to make the rent control mechanism more effective.
Extension of the Grace Period Payment
The possibility of averting termination by subsequent payment of rent arrears is to be extended to ordinary terminations (Section 569 (3) No. 2 BGB). Previously, this was only possible in the case of extraordinary (immediate) terminations.
Simplified Procedure for Modernizations
The value threshold for rent increases under the simplified procedure (Section 559c BGB) is to be raised from EUR 10,000 to EUR 20,000 in order to continue to facilitate minor modernization measures in an uncomplicated manner.
Outlook on Further Procedure
The draft law has been sent to the federal states and associations, which may submit their comments by 6 March 2026. The comments will be published on the website of the Federal Ministry of Justice. The proposals correspond to the announcements made in the coalition agreement and supplement the already implemented extension of the rent control mechanism until the end of 2029.
Further measures to strengthen social tenancy law have been announced. In particular, the results of the Tenancy Law Expert Commission are to serve as the basis for further legislative initiatives. A working group is also dealing with penalty provisions for violations of rent control and excessive rent; results are expected by the end of 2026.
Legal Assessment of the Planned Amendments in Mietrecht II
The planned amendments are, in principle, suitable for closing existing gaps in tenant protection law and increasing the effectiveness of rent control. In particular, the limitation of indexed rents, which have so far not been linked to rent control, increases transparency in favour of tenants. The extension of the grace period payment strengthens the social function of tenancy law and gives tenants a second chance to retain their homes. With regard to furnishing surcharges, the practical implementation remains to be seen, as the concept of reasonableness is open to interpretation and the current value of furniture can, as a rule, only be estimated.
