Bundestag President Bärbel Bas Lives Modestly, By Her Own Account.
Although her income in the second-highest state office is “certainly calming”, the SPD politician told the Funke Media Group, not much has changed in her life. “I still rent, so I believe I’m still quite down-to-earth on the move” she said.
Her office in the Reichstag building is “significantly larger” than her 42 square meter apartment in Berlin, which she confirmed. Since 2009, she has lived in the so-called Bundesschlange, a snake-shaped house for members of parliament on the Spree. “I simply have no desire to move” she said.
According to her last published tax return from 2022, Bas earns around €22,700 a month. This money “doesn’t do anything for me at the moment”, she said in the podcast, and she is waiting for the time when she can “spend it”. As a luxury purchase, even before her inauguration in 2021, she mentioned a Harley-Davidson for nearly €20,000. As Bundestag President, she doesn’t have as much time for motorcycling anymore.