Housing companies almost there with smoke detector installation

Smoke alarms in living rooms, bedrooms and children's rooms: The rental apartments of the large housing companies in Saxony were almost completely equipped with these devices by the end of the year. "Most of the landlords organized with us have complied with this obligation," says Alexander Müller, spokesman for vwd Sachsen - Verband der Wohnungs- und Immobilienwirtschaft. According to Vivian Jakob, spokesperson for the Association of Saxon Housing Cooperatives, around 95 percent of the approximately 295,000 cooperative apartments in the state are now equipped with smoke alarms. The rest are "in progress" or "in catch-up" where tenants were absent.

In future, living rooms and lounges in Saxony must be fitted with smoke alarms. Previously, the obligation for smoke alarms only applied to new builds and conversions. From the turn of the year, apartments in old buildings and older single-family homes will also be affected.

According to company spokeswoman Samira Sachse, more than 120,000 smoke alarms had to be installed in around 37,000 apartments owned by Leipziger Wohnungs- und Baugesellschaft mbH (LWB). By mid-December 2023, the LWB had almost completed "the mammoth task", as she put it. Installation began in April. There are now 1,500 apartments left, for which a third individual installation date will be arranged. For reasons such as illness or misunderstandings, the first two installation dates have been canceled in these cases. "Unfortunately, there were also cases in which the fitters were not granted access to the apartment," said Sachse.

The housing company Vonovia, with around 45,000 apartments in Dresden and around 10,000 in Leipzig, has also "almost completed" the smoke alarm campaign, according to the company spokesperson for Saxony, Matthias Wulff. "Sometimes we can't get into apartments because it's difficult to make appointments. They are then still open."

The majority of the almost 25,000 apartments owned by Grundstücks- und Gebäudewirtschaftsgesellschaft Chemnitz (GGG) have been fitted with smoke alarms, according to the company. "We are planning to complete this by the end of 2023," said company spokesperson Erik Escher.

The fact that the state parliament brought forward the deadline for smoke alarms by one year to the end of 2023 in June when it amended the building regulations initially caused irritation. Shortening the deadline for retrofitting by a whole year "was very sporting" and required effort, says Jakob from the Association of Housing Cooperatives. "Many cooperatives had planned for the end of 2024." However, they managed to secure the necessary equipment and tradespeople. "With a few exceptions, everything will be ready on time by the end of the year."

According to vwd estimates, around five million warning alarms had to be procured and installed throughout Saxony. Nobody disputes the benefits of smoke alarms, said association spokesperson Alexander Müller. "The short deadline, the costs and the effort involved were problematic."