Berlin. Thinner ceilings, fewer sockets, unheated stairwells: simpler apartments should make new buildings more cost-effective again. Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig and Construction Minister Verena Hubertz (both SPD) will jointly present a bill for this purpose on Monday. Anyone who builds should be able to agree easily and legally that they will waive certain comfort standards. The ARD had previously reported on the proposal.
In order to create more living space, building in Germany must become easier and cheaper, explained Hubig. The solution: Avoid expensive extras that have long since become established on the market but are not mandatory. “With building type E, we are giving builders, construction companies and buyers the freedom to do without unnecessary bells and whistles,” said Hubertz. “Every euro that we don’t invest in unnecessary standards is a euro for more affordable housing.”
What exactly is planned
The ministers want to change construction contract law so that it is easier to deviate from legally non-mandatory standards. So far, simple construction has often failed due to legal uncertainties, according to the ministries. Because the following applies: Unless explicitly regulated otherwise, a builder can expect that his house or apartment will be built according to the usual standard. However, high standards have become commonplace in recent years, for example when it comes to building materials or technical equipment.
So far, planners and companies have been reluctant to deviate from this because they fear that they will end up being liable. In the future, the following will apply: If everyone involved agrees, construction can be easier and with greater legal certainty than before. If no agreement is reached, the current rules will remain the same.
What you could do without - and what you couldn't
It's all about comfort standards that make building unnecessarily expensive. This could be less impact noise in a single-family home, a lower ceiling height or not having a towel dryer in the bathroom. No compromises should be allowed when it comes to safety and health, for example in terms of fire protection, statics, ventilation or light. In general, the principle “enough is enough” should apply: you build according to the minimum legal requirements, but not better.
What that will bring
The ministries have evaluated pilot projects - and they assume that simple construction can reduce the cost of the building itself by 10 to 15 percent. It is expected that more will be built again. Because there is a shortage of several hundred thousand apartments in Germany.
Recently, the number of building permits has increased significantly. According to figures from the Federal Statistical Office, 169,400 apartments in new and existing buildings were approved from January to August - a good 12 percent more than in the same period last year. At the same time, the costs of materials and energy and ten-year building interest are also rising because of the Iran war. There are therefore fears that the upswing in building permits will soon wane.
When will the new rules apply?
The two ministers are aiming for it to come into force in mid-2027 at the earliest. But there is still a lot to do until then, because the draft law has not yet been agreed in the federal government, i.e. with the other ministries. In addition, the federal states and affected industry associations are now allowed to comment on this. The next step would be a resolution in the cabinet, then the whole thing would go to the Bundestag and the Bundesrat.
Overall, the debate about simple construction has been going on for quite a long time: the traffic light government made up of the SPD, Greens and FDP made the first proposal for the so-called building type E (for “Simple”) years ago.
What does it benefit tenants?
If building becomes easier, more new apartments could be created, a growing supply could make it easier to find accommodation and curb the rise in rents - that is the hope behind the project. However, tenant and consumer representatives warned in an early statement against less quality for the same price. Their demand: Anyone who builds more cheaply must also pass on these savings to tenants, private developers and home buyers. Landlord representatives, on the other hand, see the danger that tenants in type E apartments could sue them for alleged defects.
And the Greens make it clear that the new building type alone will not win the fight against high rents. “Building type E creates valuable scope for simple standards, but does not replace measures against the actual drivers of the construction cost crisis such as speculative land prices,” said its construction policy spokesman, Kassem Taher Saleh, to the “Rheinische Post”.
There is also skepticism among the coalition partner, the Union: its construction politician Jan-Marco Luczak (CDU) fears that building type E could fail because builders and companies have to explicitly agree on it. Instead, he proposes a basic legal standard as the new “normal”. “If this is adhered to, a work is free of defects.” Similar statements came from the construction and real estate sectors.
