The General Terms and Conditions relate to acting as an intermediary for contracts of sale or tenancy agreements, or for introducing the opportunity to enter into such contracts. By using our services you will be our customer. This shall also apply for the use of our websites and information requests by using our contact form, email, phone or other forms of contact. Our services for customers are initially free of charge. Only if a contract of sale or a tenancy agreement is consummated as a result of our work, will we charge a commission for acting as intermediary, in accordance with the regulations set out below.

Please read the terms set below carefully in order to avoid misunderstandings in our mutual interest. If you have any questions regarding the contents of these Terms and Conditions, our management will be pleased to answer them.

1. Entitlement to Commission

a) Entitlement to the commission is acquired at the time of entering into the contract of sale, or tenancy agreement and the opportunity to enter into this contract, or our acting as an intermediary for the contract. A contract is introduced if a substantial agency service was provided. Such an introduction shall also exist if our activities contributed to the closing of the contract, or if the customer had the specific opportunity to purchase with the found property. Entitlement to the commission shall not be affected by any contractual negotiations which may have been terminated and resumed in the meantime.

In the event of entering into a tenancy agreement for residential space, entitlement to the commission from the tenant shall be acquired only if the agent obtains the request for offering the flat from the landlord – or another authorised person – exclusively for the purpose of agency for a contract with the person seeking a flat.

b) Our entitlement to the commission shall not be affected by closing a contract with other terms, unless the contractually agreed economic success differs significantly from the contents of our offer. We shall be entitled to agents’ commission if, instead of the offered contract, a replacement contract is entered into; the economic success of which takes the place of the originally intended contract, for example due to expropriation, reallocation, exercising a right of pre-emption, or the creation of a building lease.

c) We are furthermore entitled to a commission if, in close time and economic relation with the first contract, for which we acted as agents, additional contractual agreements are achieved on the basis of the estate agency contract concluded with us.

2. Amount of the Commission

The commission rates stated in our offers or contracts shall apply. Unless otherwise provided for in the offers or introductions, or unless otherwise agreed, we charge the following rates:

a) for closing a contract of sale of a property the buyer shall pay a commission of 7.14 % of the notarised purchase price, including statutory value-added tax;

b) for closing a tenancy or lease agreement with a duration of 10 or more years, the tenant or lessee shall pay a commission of 3.57 % of a 10-year gross rent (gross rent = net rent + service charges), including statutory value-added tax. This shall also apply if the tenant is given an option for a duration of 10 years for the tenancy, regardless of whether or not the tenant exercises this option;

c) for closing a tenancy or lease agreement with a duration of more than 5 years and less than 10 years, the tenant or lessee shall pay a commission of 3.57 % of the total contractual rent, including statutory value-added tax;

d) for closing a tenancy or lease agreement with a duration of more than 5 years, and for permanent tenancy or lease agreements, the tenant or lessee shall pay a commission of 3.57 % gross monthly rent, including statutory value-added tax (regarding the agreed rent / for step-up rents, the average rent of the fixed contract terms shall be used);

e) If the amount of the commission has not been specifically agreed upon in a contract, or if the regulation is invalid, the commission rate customary in the respective place shall be deemed agreed upon;

f) The last paragraph of subsection 1 (a) of these Terms and Conditions shall remain unaffected, according to which an entitlement to commission from tenants of a residential space exists only in the cases set forth therein.

3. Payment Date of the Commission

If and when a contract of sale or tenancy agreement is closed, the entitlement to the commission shall be due. The commission shall be paid immediately, however, and no later than 10 days from the issue date of the invoice, unless otherwise agreed.

4. Activity for both Contracting Parties

As part of our acting as an intermediary, we may also work for the respective other contracting party (also subject to a commission). Our target is that the business transaction is closed in the interest of both parties.

5. Special Obligations of the Customer and Damages

If the recipient of an offer already knows the availability for sale or rent of a property introduced by us, he shall inform us accordingly without undue delay and provide evidence if required. Otherwise, he shall pay a commission to us, in case of purchase or renting (see 1.a)). Any services provided by third-party estate agents in relation to the property we offered shall not affect our entitlement to commission payment.

The customer shall inform us as soon as he/she no longer intends to close the contemplated business transaction. This will help to save on unnecessary costs.

Our offers and notifications are intended exclusively for the customer and shall be kept confidential. In the event of unauthorised disclosure to third parties, the customer shall be liable to the estate agent for the commission agreed with him/her (see 2.), including statutory value-added tax at the applicable rate. The same shall apply if third parties, or other persons to whom the third party discloses the information, enter into the main contract. The same shall also apply for a company, with whom the recipient has a legal or economic relationship, and for family members. If a contract of sale is achieved in this case, it will be assumed that information was disclosed.

In case of a breach of duty on the part of the customer, the customer shall be liable to pay damages and shall reinstate the rights we would have had without such breach of duty. Any incurred useless expenditure in connection with the preparation of the business transaction shall be reimbursed. We shall have the right to invoice the concrete amounts of any incurred useless expenditure. Alternatively, we may charge a lump sum not exceeding € 500.00. In this case, the customer shall be permitted to provide evidence that damages or value impairments have not occurred or are significantly lower than the demanded lump sum.

6. Liability of the Estate Agent

Our offers, property descriptions, and information are based on the data provided by the seller, landlord, lessor, or by third parties; the correctness and completeness of which we have not verified. We therefore accept no liability in this regard.

Liability for a damage incurred by the customer shall be limited to wilful intent and gross negligence, unless any major obligations are concerned.

This exclusion of liability shall not be valid for damages from injury to life, body, or health caused by our negligent breach of duty, or by a wilful or negligent breach of duty of our legal representative or vicarious agent.

We recommend obtaining advice from a tax or legal expert for tax advice and legal advice. Any such information we provide in this realm is non-binding.

7. Privacy Policy

We handle your personal data confidentially as required by legal data protection regulations as well as by our Privacy Policy.

As a rule, it is possible to visit our website without providing personal data. The extent of personal data which is collected on our website (such as name, address or email address(es)), is always done on a voluntary basis, as much as possible. This collected data is never passed on to third parties without your express consent.

Please note that the transfer of data on the internet (e.g. communication by email) may involve security gaps. Absolute protection of data against third-party access is not possible.

Contact Form

If you send your enquiries by using our contact form, the information you give on the contact form, including the contact data you provide, will be stored with us for processing the enquiry and for follow-up questions. We do not pass this data on without your consent.

Information, Deletion, Blocking

It is your right to receive, free-of-charge, information about what personal data is stored, its source and recipients, the purpose of the data processing, and to demand correction, blocking or deletion of this data. You can contact us at any time about this and/or about other questions relating to personal data using the email address indicated below the legal notice.

8. General Details

Terms other than those in our General Terms and Conditions and side agreements shall be effective only with our written confirmation. Conflicting terms and conditions are hereby excluded.

Should any provision in our General Terms and Conditions be invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected thereby. Any provision which may be invalid shall be replaced by such legal standards and regulations that, in content and economic terms, come closest to what was intended by the original provision.

9. Jurisdiction

Place of jurisdiction among business people shall be Berlin.

These terms and conditions shall be governed by German law.

Effective 26 September 2017