September 2022

Tourism: residents are being squeezed out of the housing market

Residents without their own assets are being squeezed out of the housing market by tourists and for financial reasons. This is the conclusion reached by researchers from the Department of Human Geography at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KU) led by Professor Dr. Christian Steiner and Dr. Gerhard Rainer. Using the example of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, they have investigated the influence...

Analysis: Vacation properties vs. real estate in Germany's major cities

A vacation property in Mallorca is a real bargain compared to a condominium in Munich. While prospective buyers can purchase a vacation property with a living space of 143.1 square meters for 400,000 euros in Mallorca, they can buy just 35.9 square meters for the same price in Munich. This is the result of an analysis by Immoscout24. Nevertheless, Mallorca is only...

Mold: How to protect new buildings

Every second new-build apartment is already infested with mold during the construction phase and should not actually be occupied - this is the view of the Association of Private Builders (VPB), which has published a guide on the subject of "Mold in new builds". The causes of mold growth are manifold. In addition to the ubiquitous mold spores, moisture during the construction phase can also...

Energy: 2/3 of Germans are prepared to heat less

Putting on a sweater, wrapping up in a blanket and heating less - two thirds of Germans would be prepared to do this in winter to make Germany more independent of energy supplies from Russia. This is the result of a survey conducted by the forsa opinion research institute on behalf of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU) for the DBU environmental monitor "Energiewende und...

Judgment: Darmstadt Regional Court rules on brokerage fee

An estate agent cannot demand payment of the commission if he looks after prospective buyers who purchase the property at a later date at a lower price from another estate agent. This was decided by the Darmstadt Regional Court (LG Darmstadt; 29 O 326/19). In the case at hand, an owner had entrusted a real estate agent with the sale of his property by contract until January 31, 2019. In this...

Investments: Tips for interior design

The portal "deavita.com" has summarized which furniture owners or tenants should dig deep into their pockets when it comes to interior design and which furniture they can save on. In the living room, owners or tenants should spend a little more money on sofas and opt for quality, according to author Charlie Meier. As a rule, high-quality sofas are not...

Study: 35 percent of single parents feel their rent is too high

56% of German tenants consider their rent to be reasonable, 12% consider it to be low and 7% even consider it to be very low. These are the findings of the "Servicemonitor Wohnen" study conducted by the consultancy firm Analyse & Konzepte immo.consult. Only 18 percent of those surveyed felt their rent was too high and only 7 percent felt it was far too high. Depending on the target group...

Heat pumps: Free brochure with tips available

The Building Owners' Protection Association (BSB) has commissioned a short study entitled "The ten most common mistakes when building and renovating detached and semi-detached houses with heat pumps (avoid)" from the Institute for Building Research. The study shows what builders of single-family homes and semi-detached houses need to pay particular attention to and how mistakes can be avoided. According to the BSB...

Energy transition: TH Köln wants to create more acceptance

With the interdisciplinary project "MEnergie - Meine Energiewende", the Cologne University of Applied Sciences (TH Köln) is working with cooperation partners from the education, energy and technology sectors to create greater acceptance for the energy transition in society. Social media as well as virtual and augmented reality will be used for this purpose. "The AR and...

Inheritance tax: Exemption longer possible in exceptional cases

An heir does not necessarily have to move into the family home within six months in order to benefit from an inheritance tax exemption. This has now been decided by the Federal Fiscal Court (Bundesfinanzhof, BFH) (II R 6/21). In this case, the sole heiress of a two-family home with two apartments and land moved into one of the two apartments not six months later, but around one and a half years later....

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