The Industrial Union for Construction, Agriculture and Environment (IG BAU) predicts another sharp decline in new apartment construction.
IG BAU chief Robert Feiger told the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” on Thursday that the number of newly built apartments will fall below 200,000. “That is less than half of the amount that must be built” he said, a figure derived from a range of building indicators, including pre‑orders of construction materials and industry assessments. The drop would, in his words, draw a “red line”.
Beyond the urgent need for new social housing, Feiger stressed that affordable homes are essential for a functioning labour market and for attracting skilled workers. “When the baby boomers retire, the people who will take their jobs must also be able to live nearby” he explained. “Today many commuters travel for hours and kilometers to reach their workplaces. Those who can afford to live the least suffer most from the housing shortage”.
Feiger also warned of the economic consequences of the housing crisis. “Every seventh job and every seventh euro of gross value added relies on housing construction” he said. “Without a substantial increase in housing construction there will be no real economic recovery. More housing is the key to higher growth and is crucial for the ‘economic turnaround’ the government has pledged”. He urged the federal government to “fully commit to housing construction as a decisive domestic economic motor”.
His remarks came just before the Housing Construction Day in Berlin on Thursday, an event organised by seven leading construction and housing organisations, where the signs were already pointing towards a storm.