Berlin – Anyone looking for an affordable apartment in Berlin has had a hard time for years because the demand far exceeds the supply. Finding affordable accommodation for parents with children is particularly difficult. In Berlin and Munich, even academic families have to spend around a third of their income on living, according to a recently published analysis by the real estate portal Immowelt.
Families find it so difficult to find a suitable apartment because they can rarely hold their own against the competition. It is hardly possible for a family of five with one or one and a half incomes to prevail against a household with two double earners without children – because the landlords usually choose the more affluent couple. Even for a five-person shared apartment, it is easier to find an affordable five-room apartment because the rent can be divided among five people.
After the birth of children, there is no longer enough space
Many young families have to move because after the birth of one or two children, the old apartment is no longer big enough. What makes it difficult for families to find accommodation: Often, in the large apartments that families used to live in, only two people live after their children have moved out. For the old tenants, moving out is not worthwhile because a new, smaller apartment is more expensive than the old, large apartment. Some people sit in apartments that are too big, others in apartments that are too small.
In this situation, many families do what seems to be the only way out from their point of view: They move to the surrounding area. This is where the dream of having their own four walls, which many people have, is most likely to come true. To prevent such an emigration, Berlin must do more. The most important thing is to build enough family-friendly apartments. Until the situation eases, an incentive system could be created that rewards the letting of living space to families.