Less than half of the people in this country live in their own property, which means that Germany is worse off than almost any other nation in Europe when it comes to home ownership. At least for Hamburg, the FDP wants to change this and is discussing the application “Real chance of home ownership for everyone” at the state party conference on Saturday. After all, the ownership rate in Hamburg is still well below the national average. “Young families in particular feel the desire to own their own home and are leaving the city to buy property in the surrounding area. We criticize this one-sided housing policy, ”said Deputy State Chairwoman Katarina Blume to WELT.
According to the five-page application, the issue of home ownership for all sections of the population has been “neglected for a long time”. Blume emphasizes: “If the governing parties in Hamburg focus exclusively on the rental market, they are not only ignoring an important wish of the majority of Hamburg residents, they are also preventing the possibility of retirement provision through the purchase of real estate.” Instead of financing a property for other owners with years of rent payments , many would rather pay off their own property. The decision whether to rent or to own property must be left to the individual.
With a catalog of measures, the Elb-FDP wants to work to ensure “that the number of property owners in Hamburg increases significantly”. As a first step, the Liberals call on the red-green Senate and the responsible authorities to develop information campaigns. These are intended to provide information on attractive financing options and information on current funding. The aim of the campaign is to educate all citizens about the possibilities of acquiring residential property.
“We are calling for more support, especially for young people, in terms of creditworthiness when taking out a loan, as well as facilitation of additional purchase costs and property transfer tax,” explains State Deputy Blume. In addition, the SAGA Group owns real estate assets of around 140,000 apartments and is the largest landlord in Hamburg. “The city is not allowed to keep these apartments in stock,” says Blume, adding: “That’s why we propose that at least parts of this real estate portfolio be offered to tenants for sale.”
And last but not least, Hamburg’s liberals are calling for a tax exemption totaling EUR 500,000, which is not subject to real estate transfer tax. This allowance should apply to the purchase of owner-occupied one- and two-family houses, condominiums or to the purchase of undeveloped land for development with the building types mentioned.
The FDP is also campaigning for the reintroduction of the deductibility of debt interest on owner-occupied property from income tax. “With this offensive for owner-occupied living, we want to contribute to Hamburg becoming a city of tenants and owners from the city of tenants,” emphasizes Blume. Because for the Free Democrats, home ownership and affordable rents are among the most important elements of a functioning housing market.