Articles & analysis.
Topics from construction law, set out clearly for clients.
BRANDAUER Rechtsanwälte
Salzburg law firm for real estate, construction and corporate law
Every matter is handled by a coordinated team of lawyers, legal staff and specialists. In construction cases we look at contract, evidence, deadlines and commercial consequences together.
Building hearing in Salzburg: prepare procedure, objections and file access properly
Building hearing in Salzburg: how neighbours prepare file access, objections, minutes and remedies without preclusion risk.
Change of use in Salzburg: check flat, office or holiday apartment legally
Change of use in Salzburg: when flat, office or holiday apartment should be checked under building law.
Retrofit thermal insulation in Salzburg: notice, distance and energy certificate
Retrofit thermal insulation in Salzburg: check notice, distance, energy certificate and documents before renovation.
Business notice of defects on construction projects: section 377 UGB, inspection and evidence
Business notice of defects in construction: section 377 UGB, inspection, notice and evidence for B2B works.
Garden shed and ancillary building in Salzburg: when no building permit is needed
Garden shed in Salzburg: when small ancillary buildings need permit, notice, distance and document checks.
Site manager in Salzburg: appointment, responsibility and start of works
Site manager in Salzburg: appointment, responsibility and notification before works start under Salzburg building law.
Leaking roof after renovation: warranty, damages and evidence
Leaking roof after renovation: secure evidence, plan urgent measures and direct claims correctly.
Sound insulation defects in new buildings: impact noise, expert reports and warranty
Sound insulation defects in new buildings: review impact noise, expert evidence and warranty safely.
Defective building materials: claim against manufacturer, supplier or contractor?
Defective building materials: clarify opponent, warranty and evidence before removal.
Defective screed and floor build up: cracks, moisture and preserving evidence
Defective screed: clarify cracks, moisture, cause and evidence before repairs.
Building notice in Salzburg: how to handle notifiable building works
Building notice in Salzburg: classify documents, procedure and start risk before works begin.
Construction site safety: accident, barriers and liability
Who must secure construction site dangers and which evidence matters after accidents, barriers and liability disputes.
Measurement and quantity review in construction contracts: final invoice and extra costs
How clients prepare measurement checks, unit prices and objections to final invoices and extra costs.
Prefabricated house contract: scope, assembly and defects
How clients review prefabricated house contracts, shell house packages, assembly duties and defects.
Site installation on public land: sidewalk, road and permit
What clients and contractors should check for containers, cranes, scaffolding, sidewalks, roads, permits and liability.
Withdrawal from a construction contract: doorstep, distance sale and consumer protection
When consumers may withdraw from construction contracts and why conclusion route, information and value compensation matter.
Construction stopped by the authority: documents and next steps
When an authority stops construction, clients must quickly assess the notice, permit status and safe continuation.
Extension of time and delay notices: preliminary works and schedule
When construction dates slip, delay notice, preliminary works and schedule must be checked before costs and penalties escalate.
Partial acceptance and interim invoices: paying without unnecessary risk
How clients should record partial acceptance, interim invoices and reservations without weakening claims.
Plan deviations during construction: check variations before continuing
When works deviate from approved plans or the contract, clients should check permit, contract and variation before continuing.
Scope of works in construction offers: unclear items and extra costs
Why unclear construction offers later create variations, quality disputes and extra costs, and how clients should check before ordering.
Completion notice and occupation: when using a building becomes legally risky
Why completion notice, occupation permission and open defects should be reviewed together before a building is used.
BauKG and site coordination: understanding the building owner’s duties
BauKG, site coordination and owner duties: when coordinators, documentation and liability questions matter.
Cranes and scaffolding on neighbouring land: tolerance, payment and damage
What clients should clarify before a crane, scaffold or temporary access affects neighbouring land.
Material substitution and samples: when construction differs from what was agreed
What clients should check when materials, fixtures or execution differ from samples and contract documents.
Substitute performance for construction defects: when clients may instruct a third party
When instructing a third party after construction defects is risky and which documents matter before claiming the costs.
Condominium alterations: when consent of the other owners is needed
Alterations in condominium property: when section 16 WEG, consent, court approval and removal risk matter.
Easements and utility rights: what should be checked before building starts
Easements, utility rights and building restrictions: why land-register review before construction starts is decisive.
Ground risk and soil reports: who bears extra costs for difficult soil
Ground risk, soil reports and extra costs: how clients and contractors should assess unexpected ground conditions.
Security under section 1170b ABGB: when a contractor asks for payment security
Security under section 1170b ABGB: when contractors may ask for security for remuneration and how clients should respond.
Zoning and the development plan: what you may build on your land
Zoning and the development plan in Salzburg: what building land, green land and transport area mean, what binding effect applies and why there is no right to rezoning.
Cracks in the neighbouring house after construction works: evidence and claims
Cracks in a neighbouring house after construction works: organise evidence, expert opinion, defendants and urgent steps.
Retaining wall at the boundary: clarify maintenance, danger and costs
Retaining wall at the boundary: clarify ownership, maintenance, danger, slope pressure and costs before repair.
Emergency right of way and access to the building plot: when the court grants a route
Plot without access: when an emergency road under the Emergency Road Act comes into consideration, which limits apply and how the district court proceedings run.
Sewer connection and utility route for a new build: land register, neighbour and costs
Sewer connection for new builds: clarify route, easement, neighbouring land, land register and costs.
Surface water and drainage: when water from neighbouring land causes damage
Surface water, drainage and damage from neighbouring land: secure evidence and assess claims under ABGB.
Burden of proof for construction defects: presumption, expert opinion and documentation
Who must prove defect, cause and costs, and when section 924 ABGB, expert evidence and preservation help.
Defects before handover: refuse acceptance or accept with reservation?
Defects before handover: when reservation, protocol, retention or refusal of acceptance are sensible.
Emergency measures for construction defects: mitigate damage and secure cost recovery
For urgent construction defects, mitigation, evidence and cost recovery must be considered together.
Hidden construction defect: classify periods, damages and concealment correctly
Hidden defect after handover: separate warranty, damages, burden of proof and concealment without period errors.
Mould and moisture as a construction defect: cause, proof and claims
Mould and moisture after moving in: when a construction defect exists, how the burden of proof under sec. 924 ABGB is distributed and which claims arise.
Changing contractor: termination, accounting and evidence before restarting
Before changing contractor, progress, defects, termination, final invoice and the new appointment should be documented cleanly.
Construction company insolvent during the project: contract, works and security
If the contractor becomes insolvent during ongoing works, contract, progress, payments, material and defects must be organised immediately.
Delivery delay and material shortage in construction: schedule, substitute product and extra costs
Delivery delay and material shortage: how schedule, substitutes, variations and extra costs are documented.
General contractor, subcontractor and building owner: who is liable for what
Building owner, general contractor and subcontractor: against whom defect and delay claims are directed and how liability for auxiliaries under sec. 1313a ABGB works.
Own work on a construction project: clarify liability, warranty and coordination
Own work can complicate warranty, liability and proof. How building owners secure interfaces and claims.
Architect and planner liability in construction: who is liable for planning faults
Architect and planner liability in construction: when the planner is liable under sec. 1299 ABGB for planning and supervision faults and when the contractor is.
Consumer construction contracts: invalid clauses and real risk points
Private owners should check construction contracts for consumer law, payment, liability, variations and completion before signing.
Structural design errors: liability of structural planning and proof in a dispute
Cracks, settlement or structural risks require clean evidence. How design errors, liability and expert reports interact in disputes.
Surveying errors before construction: boundary, plan and liability checks
Surveying errors can shift boundary distances, planning and liability before building starts. What should be checked before construction or filing.
Variation order by WhatsApp or email: what can be proved in construction
Digital variation orders often lead to disputes about price, scope and approval. Contract, evidence and documentation are decisive.
Appealing a building decision: deadline, complaint and suspensive effect in Salzburg
Received a building decision in Salzburg? Why deadline, complaint, suspensive effect and party status should be checked immediately.
Building application documents: requests for supplement, deadlines and project changes
Missing building application documents can delay the procedure. What applicants should watch in supplement requests, deadlines and changes.
Building plot declaration in Salzburg: why it matters before the permit
Check the Salzburg building plot declaration: zoning, access, services and conditions should be clear before purchase, planning and filing.
Fire-safety conditions in the building procedure: when planning and costs shift
Fire-safety conditions can change planning, timing and costs substantially. Separating duties to warn, contract and authority conditions avoids disputes.
Illegal construction and demolition order: unlawful building and legalisation
Illegal construction in Salzburg: when does a demolition order from the building police threaten and when does a subsequent permit cure the unlawful state?
Advance payments and security in construction contracts: limiting client risk
Advance payments in construction contracts: how retention, cover retention, bank guarantees and payment plans limit risk.
Building permit in Salzburg: permit-required, notification-required or exempt
Building permit in Salzburg: when a project under the S-BauPolG is permit-required, only notification-required or permit-exempt, and who should check it.
Defects in common parts of condominium property: who brings the claims
Defects in common parts under condominium ownership: who enforces warranty or damages and which evidence matters.
Developer payment plan under the BTVG: when instalments become due
Reviewing a BTVG payment plan: when developer instalments become due and how trustee and construction progress matter.
Photovoltaics, heat pump and carport: permits and neighbour rights in Salzburg
Photovoltaics, heat pumps and carports in Salzburg: when permit, notification, distances and neighbour rights must be checked.
Checking the final invoice: due date, objections and review period
Checking a final construction invoice: when remuneration is due, which objections matter and how a reasonable review period works.
Local site supervision: when it is liable for defects or cost overruns
Local site supervision and liability: when supervision faults, defects or cost overruns can trigger damages.
Neighbour party status and rights in the building-permit procedure in Salzburg
Neighbour party status in the building procedure in Salzburg: which objections on setbacks, height and immissions count and why the deadline decides success.
Price adjustment and construction cost increases: when extra costs are payable
Price adjustment in construction: when cost increases may be passed on under contract, ABGB, consumer law or an agreed ÖNORM.
Time-and-material work in construction: timesheets, proof and payment duty
Time-and-material work in construction: when timesheets, material records and an order trigger a duty to pay.
Excavation on adjacent land: protection against settlement damage
Deepening on adjacent land and withdrawal of support: when sec. 364b ABGB protects against settlement damage and when compensation remains.
Trees, branches and roots at the property boundary: the self-help right
Overhanging branches and intruding roots of the neighbour’s tree: when the self-help right of sec. 422 ABGB lets you remove them yourself and who bears the costs.
Boundary installations, fence and boundary wall: ownership, maintenance and costs
Fence, boundary wall and hedge: when sec. 854 ABGB presumes joint ownership and how sec. 855 ABGB allocates use, maintenance and costs.
Encroachment onto the neighbouring property: rights with boundary encroachment under section 418 ABGB
Encroachment onto the neighbouring property: when section 418 ABGB provides compensation of value instead of removal and what role the good faith of the builder plays.
Building setback distances in Salzburg: how close to the boundary you may build
Setback distances in Salzburg: the minimum distance under section 25 of the Development Principles Act, when a development plan prevails and which exceptions are possible.
Handover and formal acceptance of construction works: meaning and legal consequences
Understanding handover and acceptance of construction works: which legal consequences it triggers, why the handover protocol matters and when to accept only with reservation.
Retention money in construction: using performance and warranty retentions correctly
Retention money in the construction contract: how performance and warranty retentions differ, when they apply and their relation to the right to withhold under section 1052 ABGB.
Variations and additional costs in construction: which extra claim you must pay
Reviewing variations and additional costs in construction: when extra remuneration is owed, how section 1152 ABGB secures reasonable pay and what applies to unauthorised work.
Terminating or withdrawing from a construction contract: rights and cost consequences
Releasing yourself from a construction contract: withdrawal for default under section 918 ABGB and dissolution from your own sphere under section 1168 ABGB.
Warranty remedies: choosing repair, price reduction or rescission correctly
The warranty remedies under section 932 ABGB in their tiered order: repair before price reduction and rescission. When each remedy applies on a building.
Developer insolvent: what buyers should review immediately
What buyers should review immediately in a developer insolvency, how the security models of the BTVG work and how you register your claim in the insolvency proceedings.
The contractor’s duty to warn: when additional costs and defects must be flagged
When the contractor must warn against unsuitable material under section 1168a ABGB, what legal consequences an omitted warning has and when additional costs arise.
ÖNORM B 2110 explained: what the contractual standard means for your build
What ÖNORM B 2110 is, when it applies and how it governs acceptance, deadlines, extra costs and securities. A contractual standard rather than a law, explained plainly.
Construction delay and liquidated damages: your rights for a missed deadline on site
Your rights for construction delay: consequences and withdrawal under section 918 ABGB, contractual penalty and moderation under section 1336 ABGB, and the excess loss.
Cost estimate exceeded: your rights for an inflated invoice
Your rights for an inflated tradesperson invoice: binding and non-binding cost estimate, duty to notify and withdrawal under section 1170a ABGB and section 5 KSchG.
Cost risk and settlement in construction litigation: when an action pays off
Construction litigation can become expensive. What makes up the costs, who bears them and when a settlement limits the cost risk.
Neighbour law, construction site and immissions: noise, dust and vibration
Noise, dust and vibration from the neighbouring site: when sec. 364 para. 2 ABGB allows an injunction and when sec. 364a ABGB gives only compensation.
Expert opinions in construction disputes: court or private opinion
In a construction dispute the opinion often decides. How a court expert and a private opinion differ in evidentiary value, cost and purpose.
Preserving evidence before construction litigation: secure the condition before it vanishes
How to secure evidence before construction litigation: independent evidence proceedings under sections 384 to 389 ZPO, private opinion and documentation.
Developer contract and the BTVG: recognising risks and securing advance payments
Buyers from a developer often pay in advance. When the BTVG applies, which security models exist, and what role the trustee plays.
Reviewing a construction contract before signing: what really matters
Which points to check in a construction contract before signing: scope, price, payment schedule, completion date and warranty under the ABGB.
Remuneration claim and refusal of payment: when payment may be withheld
When remuneration falls due under section 1170 ABGB, when a client may withhold payment and where the limits of refusing payment lie.
Warranty or damages for construction defects: the two routes compared
Warranty and damages for construction defects compared: the fault-independent claim under section 933 ABGB and compensation for consequential losses.
Notice of defects and deadlines for construction: how to give effective notice
How to give legally effective notice of a construction defect: form, content and deadlines for consumers and businesses under the ABGB and UGB.
Construction defects after handover: what building owners can claim now
Construction defects often appear only after handover. Which deadlines under section 933 ABGB run, who must prove what, and which claims exist.
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BRANDAUER Rechtsanwälte GmbH Giselakai 51 5020 Salzburg
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+43 662 6280000