General

The Ethouse Award 2022 from the ARGE Quality Group Thermal Insulation Systems (QG WDS) was recently awarded in Vienna. This prize is awarded to those responsible who, with regard to refurbishments, implement the topic of energy efficiency holistically and thereby set architectural impulses with a composite heating system. The prizes in the categories “Public Buildings”, “Residential Building with...

If land is sold that the owner has owned for less than ten years, the profit is usually taxed. However, if there is a property on the property that is occupied by the owner himself, the situation is different: Then no taxes are due on sale - even if it is a garden house that violates building law...

Furniture that assembles as if by magic has now been developed by researchers at the Institute for Computer-Based Design and Construction (ICD) at the University of Stuttgart, led by Prof. Achim Menges. They summarize the concept under the name HygroShape. In this one, not only the forces of form are at work, but also the possibilities of digitization. Their concept benefits...

Students are having to dig deeper and deeper into their pockets for their shared rooms. The average cost of living is currently 414 euros per month. Previously, the average room price ranged between 389 and 400 euros per month. The front-runner in housing prices for a shared room is Munich: In the Bavarian capital, students currently pay 680 euros per month for a room in a...

The former architecture student Moritz Hahn of the University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (FHWS) has received the BDA Study Award Bavaria 2022 for his bachelor thesis with the topic "Ideal: On the ethical criticism of architecture", offered by the Association of German Architects. In his bachelor thesis, Moritz Hahn explores the following questions, among others: "Is there a need for...

The Central Real Estate Committee (ZIA) has presented a position paper with proposals for the realignment of the federal subsidy for efficient buildings (BEG). According to the ZIA, among other things, the subsidy system should be consistently geared to CO2 savings. In addition, there must be an increased expansion of renewable energies in Germany. Furthermore, the ZIA calls for a new...

Landlords cannot make claims against the job center if a basic income recipient owes them rent. This was recently decided by the Lower Saxony-Bremen Regional Social Court (LSG). In the case at hand, an owner rented out apartments to recipients of basic security benefits and, as a precaution, had them agree to the direct payment of rent by the job center....

Under the headline "You're allowed to steal this in the hotel", the Tagesanzeiger has summarized furnishing ideas. It thus reveals how owners or tenants can imitate the furnishing trends "artist flair", "chic", "lounge feeling", "practical wardrobe" and "mood" in their homes, among others. The artist flair in one's own home is provided, among other things, by painted...

The re-letting rents of advertised apartments in existing properties rose by 3.5 percent in 2021 to an average of 9.29 euros per square meter. This is the result of an evaluation by the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR). However, the BBSR found considerable differences between the cities. The highest re-letting rents are in the cities of...

The portal "bauen.de" advises builders to think about lighting before building a house. In doing so, they should find answers to various questions. According to bauen.de, these include the following: "What rooms are there and what light is needed there at what time of day?", "What intensity and temperature should the light have?" and "How should the light...