German Minister of Construction Verena Hubertz Endorses Airbnb, but with Conditions
Berlin, Germany – German Minister of Construction Verena Hubertz has expressed her support for short-term rental platforms like Airbnb, but with a twist. In a recent government session, she revealed her own fondness for the service, stating, “I also like to occasionally rent a place like that myself.”
Hubertz’s remarks came in response to a question from a Left Party representative, Katalin Gennburg, who had brought up a Spanish proposal to remove over 60,000 vacation rentals from the market. The minister emphasized that the primary goal is to prevent untruthful advertising, where un furnished apartments are being marketed as “fully furnished” at a higher price. She used an example of an old IKEA couch, which could result in an additional 30 euros per square meter in rent. “That’s simply not well-intentioned furnished renting and we need to stop it” Hubertz said.
Regarding the topic of Airbnb, the minister suggested that it could be a subject for further examination in the future. “Not everything new is bad” she said, adding that the goal is not to present a simple “either-or” scenario, but a “both-and” approach. Hubertz also acknowledged the varying situations in different cities, stating that decisions cannot be made solely from Berlin.