Overview
- The Deutscher Mieterbund reports 52.8% of the population now rents, up by roughly three million in five years to about 44 million people.
- About six million renters spend over 40% of their disposable income on housing, with 29% fearing they will not be able to afford their homes and 16% fearing loss of housing.
- Overcrowding is acute for families, with roughly 30% living in too-small flats, while housing defects affect about 16% of residents, up from 12% three years ago.
- Studies show a widening gap between existing rents and higher asking rents for new leases, raising costs after moving and cutting mobility, especially in big cities where single tenants can face burdens over 40%.
- Lawmakers voted down Die Linke’s Mietwuchergesetz to toughen enforcement and raise fines (131 for, 440 against), as the governing coalition defers to an expert rental-law commission reporting by late 2026; Die Linke cites about 220,000 submissions to its ‘Mietwucher’ app.