**"Housing Crisis" Alert: German Tenants Strike Back at Federal Policy
German tenants' trade union files a legal dispute
The German Tenants' Association (DMB) has issued a strong warning that the rapid surge in rental prices in Germany could lead to a financial trap for many. According to DMB President Lukas Siebenkotten, households often have to shell out between 30-40% of their income on rent, with an alarming 3.1 million households paying more than 40% of their income on rent.
Siebenkotten has critiqued the federal government's housing policy record as "catastrophic." Although he acknowledges the new coalition government's initiative in extending the rent brake for new rentals, he sees the need for revisions. The current exemption rule for new buildings completed after 2014 needs an update, suggests Siebenkotten. "That's over ten years. The date should be changed, for example to 2023," he says.
The rent brake limits rent increases in tight housing markets, but with exceptions like new buildings that were first rented out post-2014 and comprehensively modernized apartments.
Sizzling Demands from the German Tenants' Association
- Nationwide Rent Cap: The Association proposes setting a nationwide cap on rent to control the rising prices and make housing affordable.
- Reducing Exemptions: The current exemptions for new buildings should be shortened from 2014 to around 2023 to include more recent constructions under rent caps.
- Transparency Boost: There is a need for increased transparency in ancillary costs and enhanced tenant rights, particularly for furnished apartments where landlords may charge higher rents with minimal justification.
Call for Change: The 71st German Tenants' Day
The DMB is the umbrella organization of 15 state associations, which in turn oversee over 300 local tenants' associations. At the 71st German Tenants' Day in Rostock-Warnemünde, around 400 delegates will discuss around 70 motions. They will also elect Siebenkotten's successor, who is stepping down due to age.
On Friday, a main motion with the association's key demands on rental law and housing policy will be debated and passed. Federal Minister of Justice Stefanie Hubig and the president of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Marcel Fratzscher, are also expected at the conference.
Backstory
According to the Association, Germany needs about 1.05 million new social housing units by 2030, but construction is far below the target, exacerbating the affordability crisis.
Source: ntv.de, fzo/dpa
- Rent increases
- German Tenants' Association
- Rent brake
- Federal government
- Housing construction*
The DMB's Battle Cry
The DMB battles for rent caps across the country, fewer exemptions, enhanced transparency of rental and ancillary costs, and improved protections for tenants. They advocate updating the rent brake to cover newer buildings post-2023 and tightening regulations on index-linked rents and furnished apartments to tackle the housing crisis.
- In response to the housing crisis in Germany, the German Tenants' Association (DMB) is calling for a nationwide rent cap to control rising prices and make housing more affordable, aiming to reduce financial burdens on households.
- The DMB also targets the need for reducing exemptions in the rent brake for new buildings, proposing that the current date of 2014 be revised to around 2023, aiming to include more recent construction under the rent cap and enhance transparency in ancillary costs and tenant rights, particularly for furnished apartments.
