I am in the process of finding a new house to rent alone and while applying to multiple places I always find this question regarding if the house is going to be used as a "Familienwohung".
I know that the translation would be a "family house", but what would classify as a family house? Is it used just to differentiate between apartments used by families/people vs businesses (e.g. an apartment used by a person to live in vs an apartment used by a dentist/doctor to perform their job) or is it something else completed unrelated?
Also, I searched a lot regarding Familienwohung and found that it might be related to some laws, but I am not sure as I don't speak German at all.
To be clear, do you want to rent a whole house or you're looking for a flat?
If a whole house, I don't know if any landlord will go for it given you're a single person. Larger flats and houses are often "reserved" by landlords for families. I think you could safely apply for up to 3.5 rooms on your own, as that's 2 bedrooms. You could argue you need a bedroom and an office. Anything bigger and I am not sure you'd be accepted.
That's not true really. Many single friends of mine live in houses. By them selves. You got the money? You get it.
The landlords you mention, 2Wishes, are an exception.
Familienwohnung:
First of all, yes, it tells the landlord you most likely will live in it with children - sooner or later.
But also it is a legal term: It's the flat a married couple lives in - with or without kids. They both must sign the contract. In case of a divorce one of the two can cling on to it and the judge will support that. The landlord can only quit the contract with both partners and has to write a separate/registered letter to each of them. (Now that was the simple way to explain it).
Legally you can not just chuck your partner out from the Familienwohnung, you can not just leave and cancel your part of the responsibility (for rent and dammages). It can become a safe haven - or a prison.
One is only limited in size when renting, when it is too small for the amount of people living in the flat.
That's not the case. A Familienwohnung is established ipso facto, by the simple fact that it's the home of a couple that's either married or in a registered partnership, even if OH moves in after the contract has been signed.
However, as you write, if the owner gives notice they must do so to both, and by separate registered mail, it doesn't matter if they know that this is a Familienwohnung or not. Thus the renter's doing them a favor by informing them of the fact that this is, or has become, a family home.
Nope . The aspect that only one partner has rented the apartment can only be relevant if the fact that this is the conjugal home isn't generally known.
I'm not talking about the rental contract. I'm talking about being registered on the address by the local government. (As for the notification, yeah I might be wrong on that, and maybe it differs per place)
The obligation to give notice to both doesn't hinge on registering as the family home is established ipso facto. OH may get a fine for failing to register but that doesn't affect the requirement for the owner to give notice to both, by one letter to each.
I believe you still have to register. Not as it being the home of course, but still. Kind of like a "Wochenaufenthalter" or holiday domicile.