There is an urgent need for action in the current German housing construction crisis. That is why the Impulses for Housing platform actors have drawn attention to the alarming situation in a renewed appeal to the Bundestag and the federal government. MIRO (the German Aggregates Federation) is part of this network of over thirty leading organisations and associations in the construction, building materials and real estate industries. The appeal reports the fastest decline in construction activity since reunification, and the clear message is: Living must not become a luxury!
The numbers from the ad hoc paper for 2023 are worrying; therefore, the housing construction industry is in free fall: an expected decline in building permits by a third compared to the previous year. A significant reduction in incoming orders from January to October 2023 by 22 per cent. As a result, the completion figures could fall to fewer than 200,000 apartments per year. The consequences are a reduction in capacity and a worsening shortage of skilled workers.
Against this background and given the current budget discussions in the German Bundestag, the initiators of the Impulses for Housing platform have signed the common demands. The industry needs predictable and reliable framework conditions; the measures presented at the housing construction summit in September must be implemented as quickly as possible. The initiative also calls for a comprehensive package of measures. This is primarily intended to promote the construction of affordable housing. For example, there is a demand for declining balance depreciation (Afa) to increase the attractiveness of investments. In addition, increased support for social housing construction and reliable financing of climate-friendly new buildings is crucial. The rapid implementation of initiatives such as “Young Buys Old” and “Business to Housing”, improved renovation funding and a rapid reform of the planning and building law framework are necessary to overcome the crisis.
The needs-based supply of building raw materials is essential to achieve the housing construction goals and must be ensured sustainably. In concrete terms, domestic raw material extraction needs planning security, which can be achieved with simplified and faster approval procedures.
The current position paper from January 16, 2024, and the participants in the Impulses for Housing campaign can be found here: Ad hoc paper – impulses for housing construction
