In Germany, many people have a difficult time because of high rents and the lack of apartments on the real estate market. More than one in two people (54.4 percent) have been looking for a new home for longer than a year, according to a study by the Internet platform Immoscout24. The total number of active search orders is increasing throughout Germany – and with it the competition. Tenants in particular have fewer chances of finding something that meets their expectations in terms of location, size and price.
The market is very tense, said Immoscout24 managing director Gesa Crockford. “In particular, rents have been rising for years, meaning that a new apartment is always associated with increased costs.”
Since 2019, the number of searches saved on Immoscout24 has increased by 38.1 percent across Germany. This increase is even greater in percentage terms than in the five largest cities, where demand is already high. As a survey conducted by the online platform among 1,183 people shows, 22.7 percent of them spent more than two years looking for a new home. Around 64 percent are confident that they will find the right thing this year. A good 16 percent of those who would like to move this year have no hopes. A previous Immoscout24 survey shows that, given the large selection of apartment applications, personal impressions are most important to landlords.
According to the study, personal and family reasons are the most common reasons for moving (37.6 percent). 28 percent need a larger apartment, while one in seven people looking for a home would like to downsize. For almost eight percent, a termination of the apartment is the reason for moving.
Regardless of the desire to move, the purchase or rental price represents an obstacle on the way to a new home for the majority. “48.1 percent of those surveyed stated that the high prices deter them from making a decision,” it says. For a good fifth, the offer does not meet their needs. When it comes to flexibility, according to the survey, 36.8 percent say they don’t want to change their neighborhood.