Caretaker (Hausmeister) — Job Description & Salary in Germany
Job description, sector wage agreement, staff housing, sourcing channels and 15 interview questions to hire a caretaker in Germany.
At a glance
- Time to fill25–45 days
- Experience0–5 years
Where hiring a caretaker often goes wrong
The typical bad hire for this role is rarely down to laziness or a lack of willingness. It happens because “caretaker” looks like a single job on paper, but in practice is a broad bundle of minor repairs, outdoor-area upkeep, coordinating outside contractors, key management, and direct tenant contact. Copying the ad from an existing cleaner or electrician template pulls in either candidates with no hands-on trade background or specialists who are overqualified for a generalist role and leave again within a few months. A caretaker is neither primarily a cleaner nor a licensed Elektrofachkraft, but someone who handles the small jobs themselves and routes the bigger ones to the right place.
The boundary that rarely gets clarified in the interview. Without a journeyman’s or master craftsman’s certificate, a caretaker may, under the minor-work exception (Bagatellklausel) at § 1 Abs. 2 of the Skilled Crafts Code (Handwerksordnung), only carry out simple, quick-to-learn tasks — not core work belonging to a licence-requiring trade. Work on the electrical installation stays reserved, regardless, for an Elektrofachkraft under DGUV Vorschrift 3, no matter how genuinely capable someone is. At most SMBs, this line never gets put in writing — it just gets quietly crossed on the job, the moment a fuse box sticks and nobody can reach an electrician right away.
Who’s liable when the pavement is icy. Municipalities usually delegate the snow-clearing duty for adjoining pavements to property owners by ordinance, who can in turn delegate execution to a caretaker. Delegated isn’t the same as offloaded: the owner remains obligated to oversee the work, and stays jointly liable if that oversight was neglected. If this is only ever settled verbally between property management and the caretaker, it stays unclear in a damage case who was supposed to clear which area and when — which is exactly what belongs in the employment contract, not an informal understanding.
What this role actually costs, and whether accommodation comes with it. The market really does split into two segments: without collective-bargaining coverage, pay tracks the StepStone median of around €32,600 gross per year; at housing companies bound by the agreement, the Wohnungswirtschaft collective wage kicks in at €3,325 a month for the base tier and €3,685 for caretakers who also do skilled-trade-adjacent work. And staff accommodation, historically the classic perk of this role, is now a niche benefit: only 4% of companies that offer it plan to expand it, according to a 2025 IW survey of 826 companies. Don’t promise accommodation you don’t have — but don’t leave that card on the table either, if you genuinely do offer it.
Once these three boundaries are settled, fill in the requirements profile from the template on the Job description tab.
Where to source this role
Indeed
Cost-per-click, daily budget, no fixed priceUsually the channel with the highest application volume for this role too, because this audience searches close to home and is rarely active on LinkedIn or XING. One quirk compared with other SMB roles: candidates often search specifically for the phrase 'caretaker with accommodation,' even when no staff housing is on offer. Stating in the title that no accommodation comes with the role filters out disappointment before the first phone call.
Career pages of housing companies and their associations (GdW member companies, regional housing cooperatives)
Usually free for member companies, sometimes for an association feeAn underrated channel for this role outside the usual job boards: larger housing associations and their trade bodies often list open caretaker positions on their own career page or within the cooperative's internal network first, before advertising externally. Anyone recruiting in this segment should actively monitor these pages or place an ad there directly, rather than relying solely on generic job portals.
Regional job boards and a notice at the property
Notice free, regional newspaper €100-300 per adFor a location-bound role like this, a classic notice at the property itself still works well, especially at housing estates with long-standing tenants: a visible notice in the entrance area reaches candidates from the immediate neighbourhood who aren't actively searching job portals at all. Regional newspapers and municipal job portals add reach among candidates over 50, who are over-represented in this occupation.
Employee referrals within the caretaker and building-management network
Typical bonus range €300-800, paid out after passing probationCaretakers within a housing company or a region often know each other through shared training courses, the municipal works yard, or previous employers. A straightforward, easily paid-out referral bonus reaches exactly the people who aren't actively looking right now but would move for the right opportunity.
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