Immobilien: Studie findet in Berlin „keinen besonderen Mietpreisaufschlag großer privater Unternehmen“

A study published in Berlin suggests that housing cooperatives formed by large real estate companies would not alleviate the shortage of affordable housing but rather exacerbate it. Instead, if compensation billions were invested in new construction, nearly 70,000 new apartments could be created by 2045, moderating the rise in rents.

These conclusions were drawn by economists from the Kiel Institute for World Economy (IfW Kiel) in a brief presented in Berlin on Tuesday. The brief was commissioned by major business associations in Berlin: the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Chamber of Trade, the Berlin-Brandenburg Business Association (UVB), and the Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VBKI).

The left party, which gained a victory in Berlin's elections on September 20th, is proposing to collectively manage large housing inventories and aims at a coalition with the Social Democratic Party and the Green Party. The issue is controversial among potential coalition partners and in the public. Stefan Kooths, director of the research group on economic cycles and growth at the IfW Kiel and the study's author, warned against such intervention in the housing market, stating it would lead to "even more stagnation" in Berlin's market. The brief contains 132 pages.