Drill a hole in your wall on a Sunday afternoon and you'll meet your neighbours faster than any housewarming could manage. They won't be bringing cake.
Germany has fixed quiet hours, and people know them by heart. Most trouble between neighbours comes down to three things: noise at the wrong time, the stairwell, and the bins. This page gives you the rules and the sentences that keep things friendly.
When It Has to Be Quiet
| Name | When | What it means |
|---|---|---|
Nachtruhe | 22:00 to 6:00 | no noise that can be heard outside your flat |
Mittagsruhe | around 13:00 to 15:00 | applies only if your Hausordnung or town says so |
Sonntagsruhe | all day Sunday | no drilling, hammering, mowing or loud music |
Feiertagsruhe | all day on public holidays | same as Sunday |
Quick notes:
- The measure is Zimmerlautstärke, "room volume": whatever you're doing shouldn't be clearly heard next door. Music, TV, the washing machine on spin and vacuuming all count.
- Mittagsruhe isn't a general law. Check your own Hausordnung. Many buildings have it, many don't.
- Lawnmowers, hedge trimmers and other garden machines are banned in residential areas on Sundays and public holidays, and on working days between 20:00 and 7:00. Saturday counts as a working day. Drilling indoors falls under your Hausordnung and the Sunday rule.
- Ordinary living is allowed at any hour. You can shower at night, flush the toilet and walk around. Children's noise is something neighbours are expected to put up with.
Words in the Hausordnung
house rules
die Hausordnung
quiet hours
die Ruhezeiten
night-time quiet
die Nachtruhe
midday quiet
die Mittagsruhe
room volume
die Zimmerlautstärke
noise
der Lärm
noise disturbance
die Ruhestörung
stairwell
das Treppenhaus
stairwell cleaning
die Treppenhausreinigung
snow clearing
der Winterdienst
caretaker
der Hausmeister
property management
die Hausverwaltung
landlord
der Vermieter
notice on the board
der Aushang
bike cellar
der Fahrradkeller
Practice these words
die Hausordnung
Quick note: the Hausordnung usually comes attached to your tenancy agreement, and a copy often hangs in the stairwell. When it's part of your contract, its rules are generally binding.
Meeting the Neighbours
Hello, I'm your new neighbour.
Guten Tag, ich bin Ihr neuer Nachbar.
I've just moved in.
Ich bin gerade eingezogen.
We live on the second floor.
Wir wohnen im zweiten Stock.
Could you take in a parcel for me?
Könnten Sie ein Paket für mich annehmen?
I have a parcel for you.
Ich habe ein Paket für Sie.
Thank you for taking it in.
Danke fürs Annehmen.
Have a nice weekend!
Schönes Wochenende!
Practice these words
Guten Tag, ich bin Ihr neuer Nachbar.
Before You're Loud
We're having a party on Saturday.
Wir feiern am Samstag eine Party.
It might get a bit louder.
Es könnte etwas lauter werden.
We're moving in on Saturday.
Wir ziehen am Samstag ein.
We're renovating next week.
Wir renovieren nächste Woche.
Please excuse the noise.
Bitte entschuldigen Sie den Lärm.
Please tell us if it gets too loud.
Sagen Sie bitte Bescheid, wenn es zu laut wird.
Feel free to drop by.
Kommen Sie gern vorbei.
Practice these words
Wir feiern am Samstag eine Party.
Quick note: you'll hear that everyone is allowed one loud party a month. That's a myth. Nachtruhe applies on your birthday too. What does work is a warning a few days ahead, and an invitation.
When the Noise Is Theirs
Excuse me, could you turn the music down a bit?
Entschuldigung, könnten Sie die Musik etwas leiser machen?
It's already past ten.
Es ist schon nach zehn.
I have to get up early tomorrow.
Ich muss morgen früh aufstehen.
You can hear everything in this building.
In diesem Haus hört man alles.
Sorry, I didn't realise.
Entschuldigung, das habe ich nicht gemerkt.
We'll turn it down right away.
Wir machen sofort leiser.
It won't happen again.
Das kommt nicht wieder vor.
Thank you for your understanding.
Vielen Dank für Ihr Verständnis.
Practice these words
Entschuldigung, könnten Sie die Musik etwas leiser machen?
Quick notes:
- Knock and talk first. Most people simply don't know how much carries through the floor.
- If talking doesn't help, the usual order is a friendly note, then the Hausverwaltung or landlord. For loud noise at night, people call the Ordnungsamt or the police.
- If it goes that far, landlords ask for a Lärmprotokoll: a written list of dates, times and what you heard.
Rules That Surprise Newcomers
Sunday is quiet for everyone. No drilling, no mowing, no bottles in the glass container. Washing the car in the street is banned in many towns on any day. Plan noisy jobs for Saturday.
The stairwell is not storage. Shoes, shoe racks and bikes on the landing are the classic complaint. The stairwell is the escape route in a fire, so the rule has a real reason behind it. Prams and walking frames are the usual exception, as long as they don't block the way.
Kehrwoche. In many buildings the tenants take turns cleaning the stairs and, in winter, clearing snow from the pavement. In the south-west the week when it's your turn is called Kehrwoche, and in Swabia it's close to a religion: a small sign travels from door to door to show whose week it is. If your building uses a cleaning company, you pay for it through the running costs.
Barbecues on the balcony. Whether you may grill depends on your tenancy agreement and Hausordnung. Smoke drifting into the flat above is a common reason for complaints. An electric grill avoids most of the argument.
A Note for the Stairwell
When you're planning something loud, pin a note by the letterboxes a few days before. It's what Germans do, and it changes how the evening is received. This one works for a housewarming:
Liebe Nachbarn, am Samstag feiern wir unseren Einzug. Es könnte etwas lauter werden. Wir bitten um Ihr Verständnis. Wenn es zu laut wird, klingeln Sie bitte einfach bei uns. Viele Grüße Familie Bauer, 2. Stock
"Dear neighbours, on Saturday we're celebrating moving in. It might get a bit louder. We ask for your understanding. If it gets too loud, please just ring our bell. Best wishes, the Bauer family, 2nd floor."
Swap unseren Einzug for meinen Geburtstag and it covers a birthday.