For six years, Karina M. and her family were looking for a new place to live in the district town. The rented three-room apartment without a balcony or garden in the middle of Ebersberg was simply too small with three children. At first they looked for a larger three-room apartment, and when child number two came, they looked for four rooms. A garden should not necessarily be there, but at least a balcony. Because Karina M. describes the lockdown period during the pandemic as extremely bad. The playgrounds were closed and because they didn’t have a car available for excursions either, they have to spend most of their time together in the three rooms.
But the search was unsuccessful: “We never found anything,” says Karina M., who wishes to remain anonymous. “You can’t get anything for less than 1,600 euros.” Her husband works as a service technician, she works part-time as a doctor’s assistant and also as a cleaning lady at the weekends on a €400 basis. “What is available is not affordable for normal earners.”
In addition to the high rental prices, the supply was a big problem: there are hardly any apartments for rent on the market in Ebersberg. It took a while for the young family to start looking for real estate outside of the district town. “I didn’t want to leave Ebersberg for a long time,” says Karina M. “I was born here and work here, my parents live in Ebersberg, we had friends and a place in kindergarten for the older one.” Eventually she saw by accident that a house near Wasserburg was being offered for rent. The landlord wanted a family with at least three small children. “We were lucky,” says Karina M. The family immediately fell in love with the apartment and the garden – each about 200 square meters in size, at an affordable price.
Fears of existence fuel the real estate market
In August of last year, the five from Ebersberg then moved towards Wasserburg – about 20 kilometers away from their grandparents and their workplace. “The first week was really bad, I missed the whole background,” says Karina M. But the family quickly got used to it, they got to know other families and are now happy with their decision. What can be changed about the rental situation in Ebersberg? “Nothing,” says Karina M. laconically. Everyone is currently afraid of their existence and wants to get as much as possible out of their property.
While the average price per square meter when buying a house in Ebersberg and Grafing in 2010 was still a moderate 416 euros, today you have to pay almost three times as much at 1136 euros per square meter. A look at the real estate portals (as of October 2022) shows that for a three-room apartment in the district town, you quickly have to shell out 1,900 euros in rent including heating. Whether renting or building: In recent years, the price for real estate in the Ebersberg district has skyrocketed to astronomical heights. A development that also presents young families with difficult decisions: do we stay – or do we look for a cheaper place to stay somewhere else?
The landlord presented a rent index – which officially does not exist in Ebersberg
The F. family, who also wished not to be named, decided a few months ago with a heavy heart to leave Ebersberg. “The ideal was: The children make friends here in the day care center, grow up with their friends, and later go to school together,” says Caroline F. Above all, she sees the proximity to Munich and the range of offers for children and families as a big plus true for the Ebersberg region. Since 2018, Caroline F., her husband, who works as a self-employed entrepreneur, and their two children have lived in a mid-terrace house in the middle of the district town. The rent including heating was 1910 euros for 140 square meters. Last year, the homeowner increased the rent to 2160 euros without this having been contractually agreed. His only argument: All other tenants also pay more. “To his letter he had attached an excerpt of average rents in the Ebersberg area and called it the rent index,” recalls Caroline F. However, an official rent index – which also results from a request to the Ebersberg district office – does not exist.
The F. family obtained information from the municipality and joined the tenants’ association. It quickly became clear that the rent increase would only be legally binding if the landlord could present the family with three properties of equal value in the same location and with the same furnishings that cost the same or more than he was asking for. Caroline F. and her husband asked the neighbors how much they would pay as rent – with the result: “All the neighbors paid less than us,” says F. The young family then turned to the landlord again. “We told him that we’d be happy to pay more if that’s justified,” says Caroline F. “But that wasn’t legally binding.” According to F., this angered the landlord so much that he threatened: The family would then have to live with the fact that the next time the craftsman wouldn’t come so quickly if something in the house didn’t work. He grants them a two-week special right of termination. “We were afraid that he would throw us out,” says F. “and we first agreed to the rent increase.”
“After all, you don’t just want to work, you also want to live”
Now the search for a new property for the family of four begins, for rent or for sale. “The rental market in Ebersberg is a disaster,” says Caroline F. “We looked at some very old apartments that were in need of renovation and were being offered at a completely overpriced price.” The local building land in Hörmannsdorf by the gates of Ebersberg is far too expensive for them, up to 1000 euros plus 100 euros development costs per square meter. Finally, the F. family decides to move to Caroline’s hometown in northern Bavaria, where prices are even more affordable. “After all, you don’t just want to work, you also want to live,” says Caroline F.
As far as private landlords are concerned, the city of Ebersberg’s hands are tied. However, when asked what can be done for families who are looking for an affordable place to stay, Mayor Ulrich Proske refers to the upcoming construction projects. “In the next three or four years, an incredible amount will be built in Ebersberg,” he says, “at affordable prices.” 250 new apartments are to be built in the next few years, for example on the Friedenseiche VIII building site or in the Augrund. The first registrations for the objects have already been received. In contrast to the designated properties in Hörmannsdorf, this time the properties should be smaller. The city of Ebersberg has failed to create affordable housing in recent years. Social housing was built on Kolpingstrasse in the 1980s, with the next apartments only being built again in 2015 on Kurt-Rohde-Platz.
Leaving, says Caroline F., was very difficult for her, especially the first few weeks were difficult, also for the daughter. “Looking back, we’re happy,” she says. Especially in view of the rising energy costs and rising interest rates, they would have done everything right. The family slowly settles into the new environment, and new friendships grow. However, the conclusion of her experience with the Ebersberg homeowner sounds resigned: “I just think it’s a shame that some people who already have so much anyway want more.