Germany passes Building Modernization Act, raising facility management demands

On 10 July 2026 the German Bundestag and Bundesrat approved the Building Modernization Act (Gebäudemodernisierungsgesetz), revising the previous Building Energy Act and transposing key EU directives. The law imposes new obligations on owners and operators of non‑residential buildings, public properties and large real‑estate portfolios, covering energy‑efficiency standards, building‑automation, data collection, lifecycle balancing, renovation planning and proof of compliance.

FM‑Connect warns that public debate focuses too narrowly on heating systems, while facility management must translate the regulatory framework into technically feasible, economically justified and organisationally manageable operating processes. Kay Meyer, managing director of FM‑Connect, stresses that “the political debate centers on heating, but daily operation concerns far more: building data, plant conditions, automation, investment decisions, service contracts, user interests and long‑term operability.” The act also touches on cost distribution, tenant protection, municipal capacity, public funding usage and the alignment of supply security with climate targets.

Facilities managers are called to integrate tasks such as asset inventories, energy assessment, metering concepts, automation control, maintenance planning, lifecycle cost analysis, tendering, operator responsibility, user communication and post‑modernisation performance verification into a cohesive management system.