General

The mood in the German skilled crafts sector is fragile. This is emphasized by Jörg Dittrich, President of the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH). Taxes, duties and documentation requirements are leading to a record-breaking burden on businesses. Investments and loans are falling at a time when they should actually be rising. "The future prospects will...

The Federation of the German Construction Industry wants to attract civil engineers and is promoting the profession on the website "werde-bauigenieur.de". According to the main association, civil engineers play a central role in the design and development of the modern world. They are responsible for the planning and construction of infrastructure such as roads, bridges, rail networks,...

People with a regular income may also be able to claim social benefits for high heating costs. On the one hand, this assistance is possible if an independent contract has been concluded with a gas supplier. On the other hand, they can also be applied for if the costs are settled with the landlord through the utility bill. The consumer advice center points this out...

The crosses in public buildings in Bavaria may remain hanging. This was decided by the Federal Administrative Court (AZ: BVerwG10 C 3.22). This means that the Free State of Bavaria is not obliged to remove the crosses displayed in its official buildings in accordance with the cross decree. The crosses are considered an expression of Bavaria's historical and cultural character. The plaintiffs, ideological communities,...

How do you modernize an apartment building from the 1920s? This is shown in a series of pictures on the "schoener-wohnen.de" portal. The particular challenge for the architect during the modernization was that the four-storey apartment building on a slope had no ground-level access to the garden, which the architect solved with a trick: a staircase now leads to the house...

In 2022, real estate transactions in Germany fell by 16 percent compared to the previous year. This corresponds to 866,000 transactions. This is according to the Real Estate Market Report Germany 2023, published today by the Working Group of the Higher Expert Committees, Central Offices and Expert Committees together with the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR)....

The Leibniz Institute of Vegetable and Ornamental Crops (IGZ) is receiving funding of around 4.3 million euros from the Ministry of Science, Research and Culture of the State of Brandenburg. This budget is earmarked for measures to increase energy efficiency and to secure research operations under the current energy challenges. The funding will be used for structural...

Renewable energies achieved a record share of 59.7% (260.68 terawatt hours) of net public electricity generation in Germany in 2023. Electricity generation from fossil fuels amounted to 38.8 percent (169.38 TWh) and 1.5 percent (6.72 TWh) of the electricity generated came from nuclear energy. This is according to a publication by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems...

A search of a home on suspicion of "adbusting" is unreasonable. The Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfGE) upheld a corresponding constitutional complaint (ref.: 2 BvR 1749/20). In "adbusting", advertising posters are redesigned in such a way that the original meaning is altered or ridiculed. The person in question was attacked when a Bundeswehr poster was...

In winter, your own home becomes increasingly important for your well-being. Jochen Winning, Managing Director of the German Furniture Quality Association (DGM), emphasizes the role of home furnishings for comfort and cosiness. Furniture such as sofas, armchairs and beds can make a significant contribution to a pleasant atmosphere. The Managing Director emphasizes that the quality and functionality of...