While the wife of the caretaker lies on her deathbed in the basement flat of an apartment building, the ageing owner of the building, who lives higher up, is under intense pressure: the wishes and desires of countless relatives and speculators are focused on her property. Meanwhile, on the first floor of the building, the wedding of the Segensreichs is taking place. Soon, human urges triumph over social conventions, and not even the bride and groom can escape the sexual advances of family members and guests. Egotism, greed and claims of ownership rattle the bourgeois foundations. In the end, the whole building collapses in an earthquake.