zvg com

July 26, 2025

ZVG.com – what’s really going on there?

Ever wonder how people scoop up houses at auctions you didn’t even know were happening? That’s where sites like ZVG.com come into play—it’s basically a digital noticeboard for properties headed to court-ordered foreclosure in Germany.


What ZVG.com actually is

ZVG.com is like the stripped-down cousin of the official judicial portal. It lists foreclosure auctions—called “Zwangsversteigerungen”—from across Germany. You’ll see tabs for things like Objects, Cancelled, and Calendar. No fluff. No lifestyle blog posts. Just the nuts and bolts: case numbers, which court is handling it, and when the auction’s happening.

Imagine it like scanning a dry but incredibly useful spreadsheet. If you’re curious about what’s up for grabs in Hamburg or some corner of Bavaria, ZVG.com gives you the headline: “Here’s a farm in Lower Saxony. Here’s a duplex in Hamburg. Here’s a plot of woodland no one seems to want.”


How it stacks up to the official portal

Here’s the thing—ZVG.com isn’t the source of truth. That role belongs to zvg-portal.de, the official government-run site that’s been around since 2007. That’s where every German court legally has to post foreclosure listings.

Think of zvg-portal.de as the courthouse bulletin board. ZVG.com is the person who walks by, copies the info, and rearranges it into their own system. It’s useful for browsing but doesn’t have the legal weight.


What you’ll actually find there

On ZVG.com, listings are broken down by state, then by court. Click Schleswig-Holstein, for example, and you’ll see things like “8 K 22‑24: Built-up property.” The “K” in that number? That’s the case file—the court’s way of tagging it.

There’s also an “Aufgehoben” (cancelled) section. That’s where you’ll spot cases that fizzled out—maybe the owner paid up, or the bank called the whole thing off.

And there’s a calendar. It’s not fancy, but it’s handy. Picture a wall calendar with red circles around certain days. That’s essentially what ZVG.com’s version is for auction dates.


What it doesn’t give you

Don’t expect to click a listing and see glossy real estate photos or a video walkthrough. ZVG.com is dry by design. It doesn’t hand over court appraisals or the 50-page valuation documents you’d find on the official portal.

This is important because those documents—the Gutachten—are where you learn the gritty stuff: that the roof leaks, that a tenant refuses to leave, that the property hasn’t seen maintenance since the late ’90s. ZVG.com skips that.


Other players in the game

ZVG.com isn’t alone. There’s ZvgScout, which basically decided, “Let’s make this whole foreclosure thing look like a property app.” They layer in maps, photos, even stats. It feels like Zillow for foreclosures.

Then there’s the state-run ZVG‑Portal, which is plain but official—if the court posts a valuation or an updated auction date, that’s where it lands first.

Compared to those, ZVG.com feels like an older tool you still keep in the shed because it does one job well: showing you what’s out there in a simple list.


Quick crash course on foreclosure in Germany

Here’s the real-world context. In Germany, if someone can’t keep up with their mortgage, the lender doesn’t just quietly sell the place. They trigger a Zwangsversteigerung—a court-supervised auction.

First, a court sets a value. There’s often a thick appraisal with photos and legal notes. Then, after months (sometimes more than a year), a public auction is scheduled.

The first auction round has a 70% rule. That means bids have to hit at least 70% of the official valuation, or the court might reject the sale. If no one bites, the next round drops to 50%. That’s why investors lurk around these sites—they’re hoping to pick up property for half its “official” value.

But here’s the catch. Buyers usually can’t see inside beforehand. No staging, no tour. That “cute farmhouse” could have mold, or worse, a squatter who refuses to leave. And you still need to show up at court with a deposit—usually 10% of the valuation—as proof you’re serious.


Is ZVG.com enough on its own?

If you’re casually curious—say you just want to know what’s being auctioned off in your city—ZVG.com is fine. It’s easy to skim.

But if you’re seriously thinking about bidding? You’ll hit its limits fast. You’ll want the real documents from zvg-portal.de, because that’s where you’ll see the legal fine print and the gritty details that keep amateurs from overbidding.

ZVG.com doesn’t mislead—it’s just not trying to be the whole toolbox.


The bottom line

ZVG.com is the quick‑and‑dirty overview. It’s the list taped to the wall, not the binder full of paperwork.

It’s useful if you want to glance at what’s on the market or scan through case numbers like someone flipping classifieds. But if you’re ready to play in the foreclosure game—actually bidding, wiring deposits, or hunting for undervalued gems—you’ll end up pairing ZVG.com with the official portal or a flashier tool like ZvgScout.

Because in this space, having just one source is like walking into an auction with only half the details—you might win the bid, but you’ll have no idea what you’ve really bought.