Hamburg hits hard: holiday apartments are becoming expensive!

Hamburg hits hard: holiday apartments are becoming expensive!

The city of Hamburg is tightening the reins when it comes to the housing situation for locals. From 2026, fees for apartments used by tourists will rise by 3 to 15 percent - and even by 45 percent in the case of repeated illegal offers. This is intended to help cover administrative costs and send a strong political signal in the fight for scarce living space. Finance Senator Andreas Dressel (SPD) emphasizes that the aim of this measure is to create a targeted steering effect in order to preserve living space in the city. Landlords of illegal holiday apartments currently pay a fee of 83 euros, which will rise to 120 euros from January 2026, which can rise to almost 1,300 euros for several apartments, as Welt reports.

Not only Hamburg, but also other major cities in Europe are keeping a critical eye on the holiday apartment situation. The use of living space for overnight guests has led to a shortage of affordable housing for locals in many cities. It is important to get this problem under control across Europe. In May 2026, new regulations will come into force that will require online platforms to transmit data on booked overnight stays to the authorities. The EU Regulation, which was passed in April 2024, aims to create more transparency in the short-term rental market and strengthen regulation in member states.

Impact in the EU

The need for regulation is also reflected in the numbers: in 2024, a total of 854.1 million nights were booked in the EU via large online platforms such as Airbnb, Booking and Tripadvisor. This corresponds to an increase of 18.8 percent compared to the previous year. Bookings are particularly high in August - in 2024, 152.2 million guest overnight stays were recorded, as mentioned in a report by the European Parliament. Cities like Paris, Rome and Barcelona are at the top of the most popular travel destinations.

Since the 1970s, Hamburg has imposed a ban on converting living space in order to defuse the tense housing situation. Instead of strict bans, the city relies on a controlled approach. Using the so-called housing protection number, which has been required since 2019, makes it possible to track the use of apartments by overnight guests. To date, over 13,500 protection numbers have been issued and more than 800 administrative offense proceedings have been initiated, resulting in fines of almost 650,000 euros.

Reactions and outlook

However, the chairman of the Hamburg tenants' association, Rolf Bosse, criticizes that the measures are not enough to effectively protect living space. It is becoming increasingly clear that the pressure to regulate is also affecting other European cities. Schleswig-Holstein only started protecting housing in 2024, which shows how urgently cities need to act to improve the housing situation for their citizens.

The coming years will be crucial in finding a fair balance between the needs of locals and the demands of tourism. Hamburg has reached a turning point and not only wants to use its measures to improve the situation locally, but also to play a part in how this challenge is dealt with throughout Europe.