Overview
- Lawmakers approved the bill in third reading, with the Greens abstaining and the FDP and AfD voting against.
- Vacancy limits apply only in municipalities that declare a strained housing market and adopt a local vacancy statute.
- Owners must obtain a permit for vacancies longer than six months, and municipalities are authorized to conduct controls.
- Exceptions cover ongoing renovations, applied conversions, inheritance disputes, and owner-occupied annexes such as granny flats.
- Economics Minister Kaweh Mansoori cited 2022 data showing more than 122,000 empty apartments in Hesse, over half vacant for more than a year, with large concentrations in Frankfurt, Wiesbaden and Darmstadt.