Housing shortage in Berlin: How the capital can create affordable housing

Housing is one of the most important social issues of our time, especially in cities like Berlin, where the issue was crucial to the election. In the capital, people are now primarily talking about the socialization of large housing groups. This just distracts from the crucial question: How can we create more affordable housing?

From my point of view, the good news is that Berlin has realistic opportunities to solve a significant part of its housing shortage in the coming years.

Because Berlin is not primarily lacking in space for new apartments. According to the Senate's most recent planning, around 211,000 additional apartments will be needed from 2026 to 2040. At the same time, the city has already identified potential for around 213,000 apartments. Berlin's housing problem is therefore primarily an implementation problem. This is annoying because a lot of things could have been avoided if countermeasures had been taken early on.

Almost 85 percent of Berlin households live in rent. The average asking rent rose from around nine euros per square meter in 2016 to just under 16 euros last year - an increase of around 75 percent in nine years. On average, Berliners spend more than a quarter of their net income on gross rent alone. Around one in five households has to spend at least 40 percent. People with low incomes in particular have less and less left over for food, leisure or precautions after paying rent.

A lot could be done

How could this come about? The usual answer is that Berlin has grown significantly. That's only partly true. A growing city needs more housing. Supply has not sufficiently kept pace with demand. Too few apartments have been built, not least because planning and approval processes take too long, construction costs have risen (too) sharply and existing space is not being mobilized quickly enough.

In addition, the increasing and now large gap between existing and new contract rents is increasingly blocking the housing market. Anyone who has an old, cheap rental agreement for a large apartment is unlikely to exchange it for a smaller apartment that costs the same or is more expensive, even if the existing larger apartment has now become a burden. People therefore stay in apartments that no longer suit their living situation, while families desperately look for larger apartments. Berlin lacks apartments - and does not use the available living space efficiently.

More than 85 percent of the potential space identified in the urban development plan is in areas that have already been developed, were previously developed or are partially sealed. There are also 24 new urban districts with a potential of around 61,000 apartments. So it's not just about new large building areas or the same old dispute over Tempelhofer Feld. Attics can be expanded and houses can be extended. Gaps can be closed and single-story supermarkets and other sealed areas can be built over. Office and commercial space that is no longer needed can often be converted into apartments. None of these measures alone will solve the housing crisis, but together, if combined wisely, they can eliminate a large part of the housing shortage.