Overview
- The Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft's Q2 2026 index shows Angebotsmieten climbed 4.0% year on year, outpacing headline inflation of about 2.6% and adding fresh pressure on tenants.
- Visible rental supply is down roughly 12% from early 2022, with extreme local drops such as Hamburg (-57%), Frankfurt (-43%) and Leipzig (-40%), which reduces choice and raises competition for new listings.
- Price growth is highly regional: Cologne recorded the strongest annual jump in asking rents (about +7.9%), followed by Hamburg (+5.5%) and Leipzig (+5.4%), while Berlin and Stuttgart saw much smaller moves.
- The for-sale market shows more listings but little price momentum, with purchase prices up only about 0.8% year on year and demand constrained by higher mortgage costs that keep many buyers sidelined.
- Economists point to structural causes such as tenants staying in below-market contracts that block stock turnover and say solutions range from boosting new supply to measures that unlock existing units, a policy debate with clear trade-offs for tenant protection and mobility.