The Frankfurt am Main Higher Regional Court (OLG) recently sentenced the city to pay damages of 6,500 euros for neglecting to maintain and inspect a street tree (case reference: 1 U 310/20). In this case, a broken branch had caused total damage to a Fiat 500 in a residential area. The OLG ruled that the city was liable for the damage due to inadequate inspection.

The Association of German Engineers (VDI) has published new guidelines to help ensure the professional planning and installation of heat pumps in single and multi-family homes. The VDI guideline 4645 is aimed at experts such as planners, system manufacturers, tradesmen and operators involved in the installation and operation of hot water heating systems that work with...

If an owner wishes to sell or rent out their property, they have the right to enter the property after giving the appropriate notice. But can a court prohibit the right of access to an apartment in special cases? The Federal Court of Justice recently dealt with this question (VIII ZR 420/21, BGH), overturned the judgment of the regional court and referred the matter to the...

From 2024, changes in the area of energy saving will come into force. The energy advice service of the consumer advice center points this out. One major change is the amendment to the Building Energy Act (GEG). From January 1, 2024, new buildings in new development areas must install heating systems that use at least 65% renewable energy. For existing buildings outside of...

The decision to purchase a vacation property should be made with caution, according to the advice of the Association of Private Builders (VPB). A vacation apartment or vacation home can be a sensible investment. Nevertheless, such a property should be examined just as carefully as the main residence so that it does not become a burden. Three central questions are...

In an article on sustainable living trends, "kabeleins.de" has captured how sustainable building can be achieved. Modern technologies and innovative approaches, such as building using the wooden building block principle, make it possible to save money and protect the environment at the same time. With the wooden building block principle, for example, wooden building blocks are stacked in XXL format - similar to Lego. A building shell should...

Construction sites should emit less carbon dioxide (CO2) in future. The Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering (IAO) has published corresponding measures for the decarbonization of construction sites by 2045 in a strategic roadmap. The strategic roadmap highlights twelve fields of action that need to be addressed on the road to a climate-neutral construction site by 2045.

According to the portal "infranken.de", the popularity of photovoltaic systems is steadily increasing. This is also reflected in discussions about the topic on social media platforms. A large community discusses the topic in groups such as "Photovoltaik: Alles Rund um die Solaranlage" (Facebook) with over 135,000 members. The community focuses on topics such as the...

Noise caused by dogs in a dog playground in a residential area is reasonable as long as it does not exceed the applicable immission guide values. This was decided by the Berlin Administrative Court (VG 24 K 148.19). A local resident had complained about noise pollution and the alleged use of the dog playground outside of the specified opening hours, which was operated by the Lichtenberg district office in...

The BVDM Furniture and Kitchens Trade Association, VDM Association of the German Furniture Industry and the Association of the German Wood-Based Panel Industry (VHI) are calling for more planning security and an immediate program for residential construction in an open letter to Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck. The target figure of 400,000 completed residential units per year seems a long way off to the associations....