Since January 1, 2022, new buildings must be equipped with higher chimneys. According to the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, "newly built pellet heating systems, tiled stoves or fireplaces must now have a chimney whose outlet opening protrudes so far above the roof that exhaust gases can be carried away by the natural air flow". The aim of the...

The North Rhine-Westphalia consumer advice center has summarized in a press release what will change in 2022 in terms of energy, the environment and housing. Among other things, consumers will have to expect higher heating costs. This is due to the CO2 price, which has risen from 25 euros per tonne to 30 euros per tonne of CO2. On the other hand, consumers will be able to...

If a tenant has to carry out decorative repairs according to the tenancy agreement, these do not have to be carried out perfectly. This is the conclusion reached by the Berlin Regional Court (Ref.: 65 S 264/20). In this case, a landlady demanded compensation from a former tenant. She claimed that her repainting of the walls and ceilings had led to a "worsening" of the previously professionally...

Senior citizens want to live independently. This was the finding of the market research institute Ipsos, which conducted a quantitative and qualitative survey of 1,124 senior citizens and 74 industry experts across Germany on behalf of the Carestore Group. The result was that 74 percent of respondents would like to live in the city center, in regular or upscale residential areas. The study also shows that...

In Germany, 308,000 new apartments need to be built every year to meet demand. This is the result of a study carried out by the German Economic Institute (IW) on behalf of Deutsche Reihenhaus AG. Those responsible also point out that there is a risk of vacancies in rural regions, whereas too little is being built in large cities. Thus, up to...

More prefabricated timber houses were built in Germany in 2021. This is according to the Federal Association of German Prefabricated Construction (BDF). The trend is continuing, especially for apartment buildings. In prefabricated timber construction, wall and ceiling elements are put together on the construction site in a short time - a house is built. According to the BDF, 14,043 new houses were built nationwide from January to September...

German supermarkets (food retail) are now consuming less and less electricity. This is according to the study "Energy management in retail compact: Update on key energy indicators 2021" by the research and consulting institute EHI Retail Institute. This is due to better refrigeration technology and the use of LED lighting. The electricity consumption per square meter...

Tenants who are given notice of termination without notice (extraordinary termination) due to rent arrears can usually still undo this. To do so, they must settle the rent arrears within two months. This practice is known as grace period payment. However, the grace period payment does not apply if, in addition to the termination without notice, the...

If condominium owners want to decorate their balcony with fairy lights during the Christmas season, they should bear in mind that this is common property and take a look at the community rules beforehand. The consumer protection association Wohnen im Eigentum (WiE) points this out. If the fairy lights are only lit up temporarily, this is generally considered "normal use"...

35 students, two members of staff and Dr. Carsten Lausberg, Professor of Real Estate Management at Nürtingen-Geislingen University (HfWU), have published a study on "The effectiveness of location analysis systems". These provide information on real estate locations. They can assist those responsible in the real estate industry in preparing a...