Overview
- JLL's analysis published Wednesday shows Germany is building roughly 211,000 homes in 2026, leaving an estimated structural annual shortfall of about 80,000 units compared with demand.
- About 50,000 new homes each year are being completed in regions with stagnant or falling demand instead of in growing metropolitan areas that need more housing.
- In the country's eight largest cities completions run at 42 new units per 10,000 existing homes while the needed pace is about 62 per 10,000, creating acute urban shortages.
- Supply also mismatches household needs because much of new construction is larger housing and single‑family homes while demand is strongest for smaller apartments for single-person and urban households.
- Rising costs are the main barrier to fixing the problem because record-high prices for materials and energy plus elevated construction financing—a trend worsened by the Iran war's effect on oil-based inputs—keep builders from reorienting projects toward cities and smaller units.