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Housing
In the city or in the countryside, renting or owning: housing must not be a luxury. This is how we want to make it easier again.
Where we stand
In many cities you can hardly find a flat that matches your income. Anyone who wants to buy often fails at the deposit and the additional costs. And building takes a long time and is expensive – partly because of many regulations and long procedures.
At the same time, many houses stand empty: according to the 2022 census, there were around 1.9 million vacant dwellings in Germany. More than half of them had been empty for more than a year – often in the countryside.
Where we want to go
Anyone looking for a flat finds one that matches their income. Young families can afford a home of their own – including where they grew up. Villages and small towns have fast internet, good connections and lively centres. And a planning application is decided in weeks, not years.
What needs to be done
Every planning application digital and with a fixed deadline: if the authority doesn't decide in time, it is deemed approved. Build more simply where expensive standards aren't required by law. And house types that have been approved once apply in all federal states.
Adding storeys, converting attics, turning empty offices and shops into flats – this should become easier. Vacant buildings are recorded and brokered instead of falling into disrepair.
A property transfer tax allowance for your first owner-occupied home. Plus state-backed help with the deposit, and rent-to-own, where the rent gradually turns into ownership.
More homes are the best protection for tenants. We also strengthen housing cooperatives and homes that companies build for their employees. Land owned by towns and municipalities goes preferentially to projects with affordable housing.
Fast internet and good mobile coverage everywhere. Reliable buses and trains, including on demand. Doctors, schools and nurseries nearby. Anyone who buys and renovates an old house in the village centre gets simple advice and support.
Building must become easier, ownership achievable and the countryside worth living in again.
A property transfer tax allowance costs the federal states revenue. Internet, transport and basic services in the countryside cost money. That's why we start with what costs little and achieves a lot: faster procedures, simpler standards, better use of empty houses. Where tax money flows, we disclose what for – and check whether it works. What doesn't work is ended.
Neighbours who don't want an extra storey in front of their window. Federal states that depend on the tax revenue. Experts who want quality and safety maintained under simpler standards. We take this seriously and look for solutions everyone can live with.
Some of this already exists. Since 30 October 2025, the so-called "Bau-Turbo" (Section 246e of the Federal Building Code) allows faster deviation from the local development plan in areas with a tight housing market – limited until the end of 2030. For simpler building ("Building Type E"), the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Ministry of Housing presented key points in November 2025. KfW supports families who buy and renovate an old house with "Jung kauft Alt" ("Young buys old"). Since 2024, Hesse has refunded first-time buyers part of the property transfer tax ("Hessengeld"). There is no nationwide allowance so far.
We want to build on what works – and make it simpler, better known and permanent.
Information as of: research of 24.10.2026.
