Short Answer

A German landlord is strictly prohibited from retaining a backup key to your apartment without your explicit written authorization.

Your lease grants you absolute, exclusive possession of the living space, meaning any unannounced entry or unauthorized key retention by the owner constitutes criminal trespassing.

What Most Expats Don't Realize

You returned home from work early and discovered your landlord inside your living room checking the humidity levels of your walls. You did not realize the owner had secretly kept a master key from the previous tenancy to access the property for arbitrary inspections. Because you accepted the original set of keys without verifying ownership or changing the hardware, your domestic privacy was completely compromised, forcing you to pay €250 for a last-minute emergency lock replacement.

What To Do

  • Ask the landlord during the physical handover to confirm in writing that every single existing key has been transferred to your possession.
  • Purchase a standard replacement lock cylinder from a local hardware store to install on your front door the day you move in.
  • "Haben Sie mir alle existierenden Schlüssel für diese Wohnung übergeben?" (Have you handed over all existing keys for this apartment to me?) — demand a formal verbal and written confirmation during the key handover.

The Truth

Germany’s constitutional law guarantees the absolute sanctity of the private home against all external intrusion, including the property owners themselves. The system treats a landlord's unauthorized possession of a key as a severe breach of contract, allowing the resident to alter the physical security access point without prior notice.