A Minor Miracle

It's that time of the year when a big fat envelope from the Hausverwaltung sets me and my bank account full of trepidation and fear. For the dreaded Betriebskostenabrechnung is here.

I have no idea whether there's an appropriate translation in English, but it's the final statement of accounts for the various costs incurred during 2006 to the Hausverwaltung by actually having people live in their apartments. That includes things like property tax, refuse disposal (that reminds me, if I ever catch the person who keeps putting plastic bags partly full of paper and partly full of non-paper in the paper recycling bins, there are Words To Be Had) and miscellaneous payments to people to clean the stairs, polish the letterboxes, stomp about on the roof and stuff like that. Part of the rent is actually pre-payments towards this set of bills, and tradition has it that there'll always be more to pay (Nachzahlung) once the final figures are in.

This year it's a rebate. Almost a whole 100 Euros. I'd go out and celebrate, but Mrs. Penguin has just been to IKEA again for additional shelf mileage, and that sort of cancels it all out.

Still, my travel plans for last weekend very nearly involved the general vicinity of the River Severn, so mustn't grumble.