Death of a main tenant in an apartment building: succession and household membership

When the main tenant of an apartment dies, the lease does not automatically end if the MRG applies. Section 14 MRG allows specified relatives and life partners to enter the lease where a shared household and an urgent housing need are established.

The relevant facts are those at the date of death. The file must make the relationship, actual cohabitation, housing need and communication to the landlord understandable. A registration record can support the evidence, but it does not answer every question on its own.

Start by checking whether the MRG applies

Succession under section 14 MRG requires the tenancy to fall within the full application or partial application of the MRG. Certain tenancies, including some buildings with no more than two independent units, are governed by different rules. Succession then has to be assessed under the ABGB and inheritance law.

The classification cannot be inferred from the age of the building or the word apartment building alone. The lease, the type of property, ownership structure, funding documents and any statutory exception belong in the first file review.

Who may enter the lease

Section 14 MRG identifies the spouse, registered partner, life partner, direct-line relatives including adopted children and siblings as possible successors. A personal connection alone does not settle the issue.

For each person, record the relationship and housing situation at the date of death separately. Several eligible persons may enter jointly. The landlord should not create an order of priority based only on an oral message. The lease agreement and tenant turnover belong in separate review steps.

Prove the shared household and urgent housing need

A shared household is a factual living arrangement in the apartment. The overall circumstances matter: a regular centre of life, joint household management, personal ties and actual use of the rooms. Registration can support the picture, but it does not replace an assessment of the living arrangements.

The person seeking succession must also have an urgent housing need. The available alternative housing is compared with the former apartment. Size, usability, location, household composition and personal circumstances may matter. The assessment remains case-specific.

For life partners, the statutory rule additionally requires a shared household for at least three years or proof that the apartment was taken jointly. The requirements for other successor groups differ. A time period should therefore not be applied to every person in the same way.

Distinguish succession from the 14-day waiver

Where the MRG applies, succession generally occurs automatically if the requirements are met. An eligible person may notify the landlord within 14 days of the death that they do not wish to continue the lease. The date of death must be recorded securely for the deadline to be assessed.

A positive succession notice, a waiver and a request for information are often confused in practice. Each communication should identify the person, the lease and whether the lease is to continue or not be taken over.

The landlord may request documents needed for the review. A missing new signature alone does not establish that the statutory succession has failed.

Several successors and outstanding liabilities

If several persons enter jointly, their liability for rent and other liabilities arising during the deceased tenant’s tenancy must be handled under the statutory rules. The property manager should separate the balance up to the date of death from later payments and new charges.

The file should contain a cut-off statement for rent, operating costs, deposit, maintenance matters and agreed payments. The lease and outstanding liabilities must be reviewed separately from any later owner change.

Documents the property manager should assemble

A sound review normally brings together the death certificate or equivalent official information, the lease and amendments, proof of the relationship, evidence of the shared household and information about the successor’s housing situation. Sensitive documents should be limited to what the review requires.

The file should also contain every notice with its date and receipt, the decision to continue or waive succession, payment evidence and correspondence with the other occupants. Where several people claim succession, each position must be traceable.

The article on tenant turnover and handover records helps organise a handover file. Death-related succession remains a separate issue.

What applies outside the MRG

If the tenancy is outside the MRG, the section 14 MRG succession model does not apply. The lease rights generally pass to the estate and heirs under the applicable inheritance rules. The heirs and landlord may have special termination rights.

This distinction prevents an MRG succession rule from being applied to a different contractual regime. If the property type, lease or ownership structure is unclear, the file should be classified before anyone makes a binding statement.

Next steps after the death

Record the date of death, the MRG classification and the possible successors first. Then review the shared household and urgent housing need against the actual circumstances. Finally, record every communication to the landlord, including its date, sender and content.

Until the position is clear, keep rent, outstanding claims, the deposit and necessary maintenance entries separate. The articles on fixed-term leases and prohibited key money cover separate tenancy issues. A general acceptance or rejection without a reliable file creates further uncertainty. The review here concerns the lease and succession; owner changes and rent proceedings require separate treatment.

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