Real estate sales in Bavaria fell by almost a third in 2023. According to calculations by the Real Estate Association of Germany South (IVD), real estate was sold in the Free State for 44.6 billion euros last year, the lowest since 2015 and a decrease of 32.1 percent compared to the previous year.
IVD market researcher Stephan Kippes sees the cause in the rise in loan interest rates, stricter lending by banks and high inflation. Interest rates have fallen somewhat recently, but despite price reductions on the real estate market, demand is still at a very subdued level, said Kippes in Munich on Wednesday. The projection includes commercial and private sales of new and used properties of all kinds, based on the tax administration’s income from property transfer tax.
Two forms of real estate business are not taken into account: so-called share deals, in which investors buy real estate in the form of company shares, and sales within a family, which are exempt from real estate transfer tax. According to IVD Süd, the crisis in the real estate sector is affecting the housing market in two ways: There are more apartments and houses for sale, while the shortage of rental apartments has continued to worsen. According to IVD calculations, the supply of rental apartments and houses fell by almost a fifth (-18 percent) within two years from the 4th quarter of 2021 to the 4th quarter of 2023.