German condo owners can claim up to 70% subsidy for heating upgrades

Owners of German Wohnungseigentümergemeinschaften (condominium associations) can obtain up to 70 % of eligible costs when replacing fossil heating systems with renewable alternatives such as heat pumps. The basic application to the KfW development bank provides a 30 % base grant plus a 5 % efficiency bonus. Additional personal bonuses are available: a 20 % “climate‑speed” bonus for installations completed by 31 December 2028, and a 30 % “income” bonus for households with a taxable income not exceeding €40,000.

The subsidies are additive but capped at 70 % of the qualifying expenses. In a typical case cited by Finanztip, an eight‑unit WEG spends €150,000 on a new heat pump; €121,000 of that is eligible. The base and efficiency grants yield €42,350, and applying the two personal bonuses can double the total grant to about €10,588 per unit, leaving a net cost of roughly €8,162 for each owner. Finanztip expert Sandra Duy advises owners to verify personal eligibility early and prepare documents such as registration certificates, land‑registry extracts and income tax statements before the association’s main application.

Applications are submitted online to KfW, and timely submission of the supplemental personal bonus requests is essential to avoid forfeiting thousands of euros in funding.