Housing construction in Germany is in crisis, and the federal government’s new construction target is long out of reach. New figures suggest the crisis continues.
Despite the high demand for living space in Germany, the number of building permits also collapsed in February. The construction of 18,200 apartments was approved that month, as the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden announced. That was 18.3 percent or 4,100 approvals fewer than in the same period last year.
Compared to February 2022, the number of building permits fell by more than a third. The figures from the Federal Statistical Office include both building permits for apartments in new buildings and renovations.
Building permits are an important indicator with regard to the housing shortage in cities: what is not approved will not be built later. Given the increased interest rates and expensive materials, housing construction is in crisis. Private developers and large investors are holding back. Building permits have been going downhill for months. Associations in the construction and real estate industry are pushing for more subsidies from the federal government.
Between January and February of this year, 28,200 apartments were approved in newly built residential buildings, the statisticians reported. That was almost a quarter or 9,300 fewer apartments than in the same period last year. The number of building permits for single-family houses fell particularly sharply – by a good 35 percent to 6,100. For two-family houses, the number of approved apartments fell by more than 15 percent to 2,200. There was also a sharp decline in the largest type of building in terms of numbers, multi-family houses, here by a good fifth to 18,600 apartments.
Source: Stern
