Erhaltungsrücklage (Instandhaltungsrücklage)
The WEG maintenance reserve — deductible only when spent.
The Erhaltungsrücklage, still widely called Instandhaltungsrücklage, is the reserve a German owners' association builds up for future repairs, required by §19 Abs. 2 Nr. 4 WEG. Your monthly contribution is part of the Hausgeld, but it is not deductible when you pay it: the money still belongs to the community's assets. It becomes deductible when the WEG actually spends it on maintenance of the building, in proportion to your ownership share, as shown in the Jahresabrechnung. If the reserve pays for improvements that count as Herstellungskosten, your share is added to the depreciation basis instead. When you buy a flat, the share of the reserve included in the price is not part of the depreciable building cost.
Last reviewed: by Yann Lephay.