The federal government currently has 3,192 apartments that are empty. According to a reply to a request from Linke Bundestag member Caren Lay, reported by the news portal T‑Online, this represents roughly nine percent of the entire federal housing stock. The federal property agent, the Federal Office for Real Estate (Bundesanstalt für Immobilienaufgaben, BImA), manages about 37,000 apartments for federal employees-mainly federal police officers-as of August 2025.
A substantial portion of these units suffer from defects or are undergoing renovation, while turnover between two let‑leases accounts for only a small share of the vacancies. In addition, 955 vacant apartments are regarded as not market‑active, meaning they are no longer available for rent.
“Given the housing crisis, it is absolutely irresponsible for the government to leave its own apartments vacant” said Lay, the parties’ spokesperson on housing policy. She criticized the fact that defects are not being fixed promptly and highlighted that the chair of the Bundestag’s building committee argues that BImA must remit large sums to the federal budget, leaving insufficient funds for refurbishment.
Vacancy is especially pronounced in commercial areas: almost half of the federal properties listed under “commercial and other real estate” are unused. The BImA holds about 5.5 million square metres in this sector, of which 2.6 million are unused. These spaces include offices, warehouses, and production facilities.
Facing acute housing shortages in many cities, Lay demands that the renovation of government-owned apartments be started and completed swiftly. She also urges the rapid leasing of the currently empty units.
