Melanie Weber-Moritz, the President of the German Tenants’ Association, has welcomed the rise in building permits but simultaneously issued a strong warning regarding the ongoing shortage of affordable rental housing. Speaking to the “Rheinische Post,” Weber-Moritz stated that while more permits are a good sign, they do not yet signify a genuine turning point in the housing market.
She noted that the increase is compared to the low levels of recent years. However, she pointed out that significant time elapses between the issuance of a permit and the actual completion of the building. Furthermore, she highlighted that the construction backlog-the number of homes that have been permitted but not yet finished-remains high at over 760,000 units.
Weber-Moritz emphasized that the priority must now shift to building affordable rental apartments. Although the rise in permits for multi-family houses is encouraging, she cautioned that measures like “building turbo” or other construction incentives should not result primarily in the construction of expensive housing. She stressed that the federal government must urgently strengthen social and non-profit housing construction.
In addition to supply-side measures, she argued that better tenant protection is necessary. This includes permanent rent controls in subsidized housing, an effective and penalty-backed rent brake, and rigorous enforcement against rent gouging to ensure that rent remains affordable for all tenants in the long run.
