The Federal Government wants to reintroduce home ownership promotion for families. The corresponding KfW programme is expected to start from the first of June, said the Federal Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Construction, Klara Geywitz, in an interview with "Welt am Sonntag".
Each year, 350 million euros are to be made available for this purpose, which will be passed on in the form of low-interest loans. Families with an annual income of up to 60,000 euros are eligible, plus 10,000 euros for each child. Only new buildings for owner-occupied residential use that meet at least the climate-friendly building (KFG) basic level standard are to be funded.
Housing construction, especially single-family house construction, had experienced a special boom with the introduction of the Baukindergeld, which collapsed with the expiry of the subsidy. However, Klara Geywitz cannot see "any direct connection between subsidies and completions". Billions of euros in new construction subsidies paid out through the federal subsidy for efficient buildings (BEG) have not been reflected at all in rising completions.
"The slump in housing construction figures last year is also the result of a policy that is directed against home ownership," says, in contrast, the managing director of the Bauherren-Schutzbund, Florian Becker. Many contradictory signals are unsettling private builders in the current situation.
In fact, the total subsidy amount of 350 million euros per year for property promotion is very low in view of the significant increase in construction costs due to inflation and the drastic increase in construction interest rates.
The government coalition is visibly not focusing on building homes on greenfield sites, but wants to give priority to the construction of affordable housing and social housing, because these would be most urgently needed. According to a recent housing study by the Pestel Institute, Germany lacks more than 700,000 flats.
(Photo: © Angel Garcia, Pixabay)
