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Rents in Bremen are rising: one in three people pays too much for housing!
In Bremen, many households struggle with high rent burdens, especially low-income earners. A look at the current situation.
Rents in Bremen are rising: one in three people pays too much for housing!
The current situation of rental prices in Bremen is causing a lot of discussion among households. According to a report by the Bremen Chamber of Employees, there are alarming statistics on rent burden: one in three households in Bremen spends more than 40 percent of their total income on rent and additional costs. The situation is similar in Bremerhaven, where it even affects one in four households. The Chamber of Employees has launched a comprehensive survey that highlights the concerns and needs of many tenants. It hits people with lower incomes particularly hard - four out of five households in Bremen have too high a rent burden.
What is it like in the different parts of the city? In Burglesum, Huchting and Gröpelingen, around half of the households cannot find affordable rent. In Woltmershausen the situation is even more dramatic. Bremerhaven has the most households in the Mitte district that are excessively burdened. In addition to the high rents, the Bremen regional association of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) and the Chamber of Employees are calling for concrete measures to improve this misery. DGB chairman Ernesto Harder sums it up: “Housing is a fundamental right, not a commodity.”
Rental prices in focus
The rental price index for Bremerhaven and Bremen shows that rental prices continue to fluctuate significantly. According to evaluations, the average gross rent in Germany in 2022 was around 598 euros, with the net rent being around 513 euros. The additional costs for heating etc. add up to an additional 85 euros. The rent burden ratio is particularly interesting - an average of 27.9 percent of the income of tenant households goes towards rent payments. In Bremen, this rate is the highest in the country at 30.8 percent.
Almost 16 percent of renter households in Germany are affected by a high rent burden, which means that they have to pay more than 40 percent of their income for rent. Single-person households are particularly hard hit and pay an average of 32.7 percent of their income for housing. Households with state benefits even have to raise an average of 44.8 percent, which shows the spread of the financial burden even more clearly.
Impact on the population
The rents that have been rising for years are causing problems for many tenants. According to a study, 5.1 percent of the population has fallen behind on rent or mortgage payments. In addition, 6.7 percent of people could not afford to keep their homes adequately warm - an alarming sign for social cohesion and equal opportunities. Tenant households are particularly affected here, where this rate even rises to 8.9 percent.
The depressing reality for many citizens of Bremen and Bremerhaven is clear: the pressure on the housing markets and the associated costs continue to increase. It is urgent that political decision-makers finally take consistent measures to create affordable housing and improve the quality of life for the affected households. The discussion about a rent freeze, as the DGB is calling for, could be a first step in the right direction.
For further information about rental prices in Bremen and Bremerhaven, you can find it here Rent index. Further data on the topic can be found in the overview of Social report 2024 as well as the article by buten and within.