German Apartment Vocabulary: WG, Kaltmiete & Viewing Phrases

Apartment hunting in Germany runs on a handful of words: die Wohnung (apartment), die WG (a shared flat, short for Wohngemeinschaft), die Kaltmiete (rent without utilities), die Warmmiete (rent including utilities and heating) and die Besichtigung (the viewing). Learn these, and you can read most listings and ask the questions that matter.

Basic Vocabulary: Wohnung, WG and Who's Who

German	English
die Wohnung (pl. die Wohnungen)	apartment, flat
die WG (pl. die WGs)	shared flat (short for die Wohngemeinschaft, said "vay-GAY")
das WG-Zimmer	room in a shared flat
der Mitbewohner / die Mitbewohnerin	flatmate, roommate
der Makler / die Maklerin	real estate agent
der Vermieter / die Vermieterin	landlord / landlady
der Mieter / die Mieterin	tenant
der Mietvertrag (pl. die Mietverträge)	lease, rental contract
die Besichtigung	viewing (eine Wohnung besichtigen = to view an apartment)

Why die WG but das WG-Zimmer? In a compound, the last word sets the gender (die Gemeinschaft, das Zimmer), one of the patterns in our guide to der, die, das rules.

Kaltmiete vs. Warmmiete: What Rent Really Costs

Rent is die Miete, but listings split it into parts:

German	English	Good to know
die Kaltmiete (KM)	"cold rent": rent without utilities	The figure most listings lead with
die Nebenkosten (NK, plural)	utilities, service charges	Advance payments for water, heating, garbage collection and more
die Warmmiete (WM)	"warm rent": rent including utilities	What you pay each month
die Kaution	deposit	Usually up to three months' Kaltmiete
die Provision	agent's fee, commission	Also die Maklerprovision or die Courtage

The formula: Kaltmiete + Nebenkosten = Warmmiete. If heating (Heizkosten, HK) is listed separately, add it. Compare apartments by the Warmmiete, and budget extra for electricity (der Strom) and internet, which you usually arrange yourself. A yearly statement, die Nebenkostenabrechnung, then settles what you actually used.

Kaution and Provision: Paying Up Front

The Kaution is usually up to three months' Kaltmiete. You get it back after you move out, minus any costs for damage or unpaid bills. Pay it only once you've signed the Mietvertrag.

For the Provision, rentals follow the Bestellerprinzip ("whoever orders, pays"): since 2015, the agent's fee is paid by whoever hired the agent. If the landlord hired the agent, the landlord pays, so as a renter you normally don't. You'd only pay if you hired an agent yourself to find you an apartment. If unsure, ask: Muss ich eine Provision zahlen? — Do I have to pay a commission?

Rooms, Size and Other Listing Words

German	English	Good to know
die Zimmeranzahl	number of rooms	Counts the living room and bedrooms, not the kitchen or bathroom
die 3-Zimmer-Wohnung	three-room apartment	A living room and two bedrooms: roughly a "two-bedroom"
qm / m² (der Quadratmeter)	square meters	1 qm ≈ 10.8 sq ft
die EBK (die Einbauküche)	fitted kitchen	Many unfurnished apartments come without a kitchen
der Altbau / der Neubau	older / newer building	Altbau usually means pre-war: high ceilings, often no elevator
möbliert / unmöbliert	furnished / unfurnished	Long-term rentals are mostly unfurnished
befristet / unbefristet	fixed-term / open-ended	Regular leases are usually unbefristet

Floors count up from the ground floor (das Erdgeschoss, EG): Ich wohne im zweiten Stock. — I live two floors up (the third floor in American English). Listings write this as 2. OG (Obergeschoss).

Documents Landlords Ask For

Landlords often choose tenants by paperwork, so have these ready:

German	English	Good to know
die SCHUFA-Auskunft	credit report	From Germany's main credit agency, SCHUFA. New arrivals often have no record yet: say so and offer other proof.
die Mieterselbstauskunft	tenant self-disclosure	The landlord's form: job, income, household, pets
die Gehaltsnachweise (pl.)	proof of income	Usually your last three payslips or your employment contract (der Arbeitsvertrag)
die Wohnungsgeberbestätigung	landlord's confirmation of move-in	Not for the application: you get it when you move in

Don't skip the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung. Your landlord (or the main tenant, if you sublet a WG room) signs it to confirm you've moved in, and without it you can't do the Anmeldung, the address registration that's generally due within two weeks. Our guide to the Anmeldung and German for the Bürgeramt walks you through it. To ask for the form: Können Sie mir bitte die Wohnungsgeberbestätigung ausfüllen? — Could you please fill in the landlord's confirmation for me?

How to Read a German Apartment Listing

Listings (die Anzeigen) on sites like ImmoScout24 or WG-Gesucht are packed with abbreviations. A typical one:

Helle 3-Zi.-Whg. im Altbau, 72 qm, 2. OG, Balkon, EBK. KM 890 €, NK 210 € inkl. HK, Kaution 3 KM. Frei ab 01.12., provisionsfrei.

Listing	Meaning
Helle 3-Zi.-Whg.	bright three-room apartment (Zi. = Zimmer, Whg. = Wohnung)
72 qm	72 square meters (zweiundsiebzig Quadratmeter), about 775 sq ft
2. OG	two floors above the ground floor
EBK	fitted kitchen included
KM 890 €	Kaltmiete: 890 euros a month
NK 210 € inkl. HK	utilities: 210 euros, including heating (Heizkosten)
Kaution 3 KM	deposit: three months' Kaltmiete, so 2,670 euros
Frei ab 01.12.	available from December 1 (ab dem ersten Dezember)
provisionsfrei	no agent's fee for you

So the Warmmiete is 1.100 € (German uses a point for thousands): tausendeinhundert Euro, or casually elfhundert, plus electricity. Our guide to German numbers covers prices like these.

You'll also see WM (Warmmiete), zzgl. (zuzüglich, plus), ZKB (Zimmer, Küche, Bad: rooms, kitchen, bath), DG (Dachgeschoss, top floor) and ab sofort (available now). Three to watch for:

WBS erforderlich — you need a Wohnberechtigungsschein, a certificate for subsidized housing.
Tausch — swap only: the tenants want your apartment in exchange.
Ablöse — a payment the outgoing tenant wants for furniture or a kitchen they leave behind.

How to Write an Inquiry Message

Popular listings get dozens of messages, so keep yours short, complete and polite. For an apartment, write formally with Sie:

German	English
Betreff: Anfrage zur Wohnung in der Lindenstraße	Subject: Inquiry about the apartment on Lindenstraße
Sehr geehrte Frau Schneider,	Dear Ms. Schneider,
ich interessiere mich sehr für Ihre Wohnung und würde sie gern besichtigen.	I'm very interested in your apartment and would like to view it.
Kurz zu mir: Ich bin 29, arbeite als Ingenieurin in Leipzig und suche eine ruhige Wohnung für meinen Partner und mich. Wir rauchen nicht und haben keine Haustiere.	A little about me: I'm 29, I work as an engineer in Leipzig, and I'm looking for a quiet apartment for my partner and me. We don't smoke and have no pets.
Alle Unterlagen schicke ich Ihnen gern zu.	I'll gladly send you all the documents.
Wann wäre eine Besichtigung möglich?	When would a viewing be possible?
Mit freundlichen Grüßen Emily Carter	Kind regards, Emily Carter

Note the lowercase ich after the greeting and the missing comma after Mit freundlichen Grüßen: both are standard German. Our guide to writing a formal email in German has more. Useful extra lines:

Ich habe einen unbefristeten Arbeitsvertrag. — I have a permanent employment contract.
Ich könnte jederzeit zur Besichtigung kommen. — I could come to a viewing at any time.
Über eine Rückmeldung würde ich mich sehr freuen. — I'd be very glad to hear from you.

Writing to a WG? Use du and ihr, and make it personal: Hallo zusammen, ich bin Sam, 24, und mache gerade meinen Master in Hamburg. — Hi everyone, I'm Sam, 24, and I'm doing my master's in Hamburg. Sign off with Liebe Grüße (best wishes).

Phrases for the Viewing (Besichtigung)

Be on time, bring your documents and ask questions:

Ist die Wohnung noch frei? — Is the apartment still available?
Ab wann ist die Wohnung frei? — When is the apartment available from?
Wie hoch sind die Nebenkosten? — How much are the utilities?
Sind die Heizkosten in den Nebenkosten enthalten? — Is heating included in the utilities?
Gehört die Einbauküche zur Wohnung? — Does the fitted kitchen come with the apartment?
Gibt es einen Anschluss für die Waschmaschine? — Is there a washing machine connection?
Sind Haustiere erlaubt? — Are pets allowed?
Welche Unterlagen brauchen Sie? — What documents do you need?

Frei means available here, not free of charge. The answer is often ab sofort (right away) or a date: Ab dem ersten März. — From March 1. And German asks how high an amount is: Wie hoch ist die Miete?

In big cities, expect a Massenbesichtigung (a group viewing with dozens of people), so bring printed documents. If you want the apartment, say so: Ich würde die Wohnung gern nehmen. — I'd like to take the apartment.

WG-Casting: How Shared Flats Choose a Flatmate

In a WG, the current flatmates choose who moves in, often at a WG-Casting: a relaxed kitchen chat that's really an interview, sometimes with other applicants present. Expect personal questions, always with du:

Was machst du so? — What do you do? (job or studies)
Wie lange willst du bleiben? — How long do you want to stay?
Was machst du in deiner Freizeit? — What do you do in your free time?

Ask your own questions too, because WGs differ: a Zweck-WG is a purely practical arrangement, while others cook and go out together.

Wie sieht euer WG-Leben aus? — What's life in your WG like?
Habt ihr einen Putzplan? — Do you have a cleaning schedule?
Gibt es eine WG-Kasse? — Is there a shared kitty for things like toilet paper?

You'll often hear Wir melden uns bis Sonntag. — We'll get back to you by Sunday. A yes is eine Zusage, a no is eine Absage, and silence usually means no. For your own short intro, see our guide on how to introduce yourself in German.

Moving-In Vocabulary

German	English
der Umzug	the move (umziehen = to move house)
einziehen / ausziehen	to move in / to move out
die Schlüsselübergabe	key handover
das Übergabeprotokoll	handover report, listing any defects (die Mängel)
der Zählerstand	meter reading: note it on day one
der Stromanbieter	electricity provider
der Briefkasten / das Klingelschild	mailbox / doorbell nameplate: your name goes on both
die Hausordnung	house rules, such as quiet hours (die Ruhezeiten)

At the handover, photograph everything and point out damage: Hier ist ein Kratzer im Boden. Bitte schreiben Sie das ins Protokoll. — There's a scratch in the floor here. Please put that in the report.

The moving verbs are separable and take sein in the perfect tense: Wir ziehen am 1. März ein. — We're moving in on March 1. Wir sind gestern eingezogen. — We moved in yesterday.

Then register your address within two weeks, Wohnungsgeberbestätigung in hand. Here's how the Anmeldung works.

Common Mistakes

Wrong	Right	Why
Ich vermiete eine Wohnung. (as the tenant)	Ich miete eine Wohnung.	Mieten is to rent as a tenant; vermieten is to rent out, as a landlord.
Ich suche ein Apartment.	Ich suche eine Wohnung.	Das Apartment usually means a small one-room flat. Die Wohnung is the general word.
Die Möbel ist neu.	Die Möbel sind neu.	Möbel (furniture) is plural. One piece is das Möbelstück.
Ich ziehe mich aus. (meaning "I'm moving out")	Ich ziehe aus.	With mich, you're getting undressed.
Ich habe mich umgezogen. (meaning "I've moved")	Ich bin umgezogen.	Sich umziehen means to change clothes.
Kannst du mir die Wohnung zeigen? (to a landlord)	Können Sie mir die Wohnung zeigen?	Landlords and agents get Sie; WGs use du.

The costliest mistake isn't grammar: transferring money before you've seen the apartment and signed a contract. That's how rental scams work.

Practice

Decode this WG listing:

WG-Zimmer, 16 qm, möbl., 480 € warm, befristet bis 31.03., NR

Is the room furnished?
Do utilities come on top of the 480 euros?
Can you stay as long as you like?
Can you smoke in the flat?

Answers: 1. Yes: möbl. = möbliert. 2. No: warm includes utilities (but ask about electricity and internet). 3. No: it's befristet, a fixed-term let until March 31. 4. No: NR = Nichtraucher (non-smoker).

Then test yourself with an A2 German quiz, and polish polite forms like würde gern and könnte with our guide on how to be polite in German.

FAQ

What does WG mean in German?

WG stands for Wohngemeinschaft, a shared flat: you rent your own room and share the kitchen and bathroom. It's feminine (die WG) and pronounced "vay-GAY".

What's the difference between Kaltmiete and Warmmiete?

Kaltmiete is the rent alone. Warmmiete is the Kaltmiete plus the Nebenkosten, including heating. Electricity and internet usually come on top.

Do I have to pay the agent's fee in Germany?

Normally not, if the landlord hired the agent. Under the Bestellerprinzip, whoever hires the agent pays. You'd only pay a Provision if you hired an agent yourself to find you an apartment.

How much is the deposit for an apartment in Germany?

Usually up to three months' Kaltmiete. For a Kaltmiete of 800 euros, that's up to 2,400 euros.