- A consistent property schedule links the unit number, plans and allocated ancillary areas.
- The absence of a separate ancillary-property entry in the land register does not automatically rule out a valid allocation.
- Utility value, usable floor area and selling price perform different tasks.
Which unit belongs to which share?
Begin with the cadastral municipality, land register folio number, address and apartment ownership unit identified in the land register. Check these details against the apartment ownership agreement and utility value assessment. In older buildings, door numbers, staircase designations or cellar compartment numbers may have changed. A number displayed today is therefore only a starting point for comparison.
Keep an allocation list for the apartment and ancillary areas. Use an additional working identifier if documents use different descriptions, and note each original description. This makes clear whether two plans show the same compartment or actually refer to different areas. Leave contradictions explicitly recorded until suitable evidence resolves them.
What do the individual documents prove?
The land register contains registered rights and refers to underlying deeds. The collection of deeds helps establish the extent and basis of an entry; it is generally open to inspection. A land register extract does not, however, automatically contain all details of a room plan. Several documents must therefore be brought together to record the existing property.
| Document | What should it be used for? | Which limitation should be observed? |
|---|---|---|
| Land register extract | Share, property description, rights and encumbrances | Not complete evidence of physical condition |
| Apartment ownership agreement | Designated use and contractual allocation | Read amendments and appendices too |
| Utility value assessment | Areas, uplifts and relative values | Not a current selling price |
| Approved plan | Check the approved layout and descriptions | Actual construction may differ |
| Inspection record | Record rooms and access currently in use | Use alone does not prove ownership rights |
Foundations: oesterreich.gv.at [1]
Cellars, gardens and parking spaces are not automatically ancillary property
The WEG distinguishes apartment ownership units, ancillary property and common parts. A parking space, for example, may be a separate apartment ownership unit. For a cellar or garden, check which allocation was actually established. Exclusive use under a use arrangement has a different legal status from ancillary apartment ownership. For older arrangements, the law applicable at the time may also matter.
Under § 5 paragraph 3 WEG, ancillary property may be covered by registration of the main unit if its allocation is unambiguously established by the bases specified there. Therefore check the agreement or court decision together with the utility value assessment. A statement that the cellar is included should contain a specific compartment identifier, location and traceable reference in the deeds. A set of keys or verbal confirmation alone is insufficient for this check.
Why 80 utility-value points do not mean 80 square metres
Under the WEG, utility value expresses the relationship of one unit to the other units in the property. It is based on usable floor area plus uplifts and deductions for certain characteristics. The minimum ownership share is linked to this relationship. These figures are determined in a different context from the selling price expected at the valuation date.
Only copy a figure from the utility value table after clarifying the column heading. An uplift for ancillary property must not be read as additional living area. Likewise, the share of total utility value cannot simply be treated as the same share of the building's total sale value. Differing tenancy arrangements, condition or marketability may require separate consideration in the current valuation.
Foundations: RIS [2]
What should you do after alterations or a change of use?
Create a list of observed discrepancies: combined rooms, a different entrance, an exchanged cellar compartment or a former ancillary area used as living space. For each item, note whether building approval, consent under apartment ownership law, changed allocation or an updated utility value assessment must be checked. These questions concern different levels; a single new plan does not automatically answer them all together.
§ 16 WEG contains rules on alterations to an apartment ownership unit. Which evidence or further steps are needed in the particular case should be clarified with the relevant professionals. Until then, the valuation expressly describes the evidenced condition and the unresolved assumption. A change to your own worksheet corrects neither a contract nor the land register. File the final clarification with its date and document.
Foundations: RIS [4]
Fictional case: the cellar compartment in use has a different number
Hypothetical apartment Top 12. The current key opens cellar K7; the agreement and utility value assessment both identify K3. The compartments are different sizes.
- The owner photographs both locations, records the current labels and compares them with the original cellar plan.
- The manager finds no documented renumbering. A former neighbour had merely mentioned a swap. The allocation of K7, which is being used, therefore remains unresolved.
- For the valuation, K3 is recorded as the ancillary property allocated by the deeds; actual use of K7 is documented as a discrepancy. Whether a valid swap occurred and what correction would be needed are examined legally.
The larger compartment in use is not silently adopted as a secure sales feature. The case shows the difference between observed use and substantiated allocation.
Your next assessment steps
Record what you have already clarified and which documents you still need.
Compile the land register and relevant deeds
Links the registered share to its specific legal basis.
Where can I obtain the supporting information?
Your own purchase documents, the land register or collection of deeds.
Reconcile property descriptions across all plans
Reveals renumbering and genuinely different areas.
Where can I obtain the supporting information?
Apartment ownership agreement, appendices and property manager.
Transfer areas and utility values into separate columns
Prevents confusion between square metres and relative values.
Where can I obtain the supporting information?
Utility value assessment and documented area schedule.
Assign a specific check to every discrepancy in the existing property
Shows which prerequisite is missing for a reliable valuation.
Where can I obtain the supporting information?
Depending on the question, a technical specialist, legal adviser or building authority.
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Sources and date
The following sources support this main article. For your specific property, current documents and the applicable conditions matter.
- oesterreich.gv.atLand register inspection: main register and collection of deeds
- RISApartment Ownership Act 2002 § 2: units, ancillary property, usable floor area and utility value
- RISApartment Ownership Act 2002 § 5: acquisition and allocation of ancillary property
- RISApartment Ownership Act 2002 § 16: use, alteration and maintenance
Editorial date: 11/09/2026. Examples explain relationships and do not contain an individually prepared property valuation. Editorial work and sources.
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