Apartment sale through an agent - what to pay attention to?

Why should the community of owners have to approve the sale of an apartment?

Because it may have been agreed upon within the framework of the WEG. The possibility exists.

However, the refusal of consent must still be justified and is only possible for a special reason.

Why should the owners' association have to approve the sale of an apartment? Every owner can sell their private property whenever and to whomever they want.

The Residential Property Act provides all the answers in 12 WEG...

TE can differ but does not have to be effective

A third party in the sense of 12 WEG is the administrator.

They must/should know who the current owner is. Hence the requirement for approval.

Why should the owners' association have to approve the sale of an apartment? Every owner can sell their private property whenever and to whomever they want.

This clause actually exists, but in our case (24 residential units spread over 4 buildings) it was removed two years ago.

The appointment with the real estate agent was quite straightforward.

The listing will go online in the next few days, the contract duration is 6 months, but the assumption is that due to the location and condition of the apartment, the response will be strong and the apartment can be sold in less than 3 months.

The transfer of ownership is, however, not scheduled until May 2017.

If there is interest, I would be happy to share my experiences here.