--- title: "Publication: More affordable housing in the existing housing stock" url: "https://www.plattform-bauen-und-wohnen.de/en/worth-knowing/publication-more-affordable-housing-in-the-existing-housing-stock/" date: 2026-08-20 modified: 2026-09-07 categories: - Blog - Publikation - Wissenswertes - Veröffentlichung --- # Publication: More affordable housing in the existing housing stock 1. [Home](https://www.plattform-bauen-und-wohnen.de/en/) 2. [Worth knowing](https://www.plattform-bauen-und-wohnen.de/en/worth-knowing/) 3. [acatech IMPULS](https://www.plattform-bauen-und-wohnen.de/en/worth-knowing/publication-more-affordable-housing-in-the-existing-housing-stock/) *With two publications from the acatech IMPULSE series, we are publishing the key findings of our ‘Building & Living: A Platform for Networking, Synthesis and Transfer’ project: by setting out concrete courses of action, we are addressing the federal and state governments – as the key legislative and regulatory bodies in Germany – as well as local authorities. After all, affordable housing remains one of the greatest challenges facing Germany. The existing building stock in urban areas offers considerable potential to address this issue – for example, through adding storeys, constructing extensions, converting commercial and office space, subdividing large flats and other forms of infill development.* 24.04.2025 Reading time: **The figures speak for themselves** There is a shortage of hoursin, particularly in metropolitan areas, especially for low- and middle-income households. Arrording to current estimates, arouns 1.4 million homes are lacking across Germany, approximately 420.000 of them in the country's ten largest cities. At the same time, experts believe that up to 1.7 million additional homes could be created simply by addind floors to office buildings, retail spaces and multi-storey car parks.1 A further 60.000 homes could be created by converting vacant oofice space.2 **Federal and state governments: creating the right conditions** The proposals put forward by the project members and compiled in the acatech IMPULS publication “More affordable housing in existing buildings - options for the federal and stat governance” aim to improve the legal anf financial framework. These proposals include strengthening municipalities' pre-emtive purchase rights, facilitating simplified construction, abd temporarily designating housing needs in areas with tight housing markets as an “overriding public interest”. This would make the balancing process involved in drawing up land-use plans simpler and faster. The platfrom experts also see a need for action in the area of building regulations. Although a Model Building Code (MBO) exists, each federal state has its own state building regulations (LBOI). Building within the existing housing stock should be anchored in the Model Building Code in order to harmonise and simplify the handling of existing buildings across Germany - for example, with regard to the protection of existing buildings or other deviations from building-regulation requirements. Investing in creating affordable housing can be strengthened through financial funding and incentive instruments. Among other things, the project experts recommend further developing housing subsidies provided by the federal and state governments, particularly for socially subsidised housing. When funding energy-efficient renovations, greater consideration should be given to the relationship between the costs and the resulting CO2 savings. The publiation also addresses the need for interdisciplinary expertise for integrated urban planning, particularly when building within the existing housing stock. **Local authorities and local government institutions: taking on a clear role in housing policy** Local authorities are not merely approval and administrative authorities. They own land, plan and regulate development, and can actively shape the housing market and pursue social policy objectives. The role a municipality defines for itself in housing policy is therefore crucial. The acatech IMPULS “More affordable housing - options for Local authorities and local government institutions” is aimed in particular at local authorities and local government institutions operating in tight housing markets or where such developments are foreseeable. The publiation outlines areas of action for urban and neighbourhood planning that are intended to help safeguard affordability. The proposals are based on approaches that have already proved succesfully in some municipalities. Existing instruments where reorganised during the project, linked wiht other ideas and further developed with a strong focus on practical applications. For example, the experts recommend estblishing the heritable building right as a standard land-policy instrument, making greater use of concept-based land allocations, and using pre-emptive purchase rights more extensively. Further proposals concern the digital cadastral-based recording of vacancies, cnversion and redensification opportunities, and the activation of housing potential, as well as optimising project implementation in municipal housing stocks. A cooperative partnership-based approach by local authorities is essential for successful implementation. This includes working accross administrative departments and, where appropriate, accross municipal boundries, as well as involving relevant groups of property owners and citizens in the project. The two publiations make one thing clear: more affordable housing cannot be created through individual measures alone. Coordinated action is required from the federal, state and municipal levels - in cooperation with the housing and real-estate sectors, academia, civial society, and citizens. Both IMPULS publications are available in long and short versions for download at [www.acatech.de/bauenundwohnen](http://www.acatech.de/bauenundwohnen "http://www.acatech.de/bauenundwohnen") (in German only). 1 “Wohnungsbau braucht (mehr) Fläche”, Institute for Housing, Real Estate, Urban and Regional Development (InWIS) 2025; InWIS’s own calculations based on the “Deutschlandstudie 2019”, Technical University of Darmstadt/Pestel Institute 2019 2 „Homeoffice und die Zukunft der Büros: Flexibilisierung, Reduzierung und Umnutzungspotenzial“, ifo Institute study, 2024 ![](https://shimazaki-kanta.toujou.website/_assets/processed/yYepthSEzTujO7DwGZWrdcj5dx--rPta5bjy67GcSNk/q:85/c:1516.956956957:853.16805324459:fp:0.498998998999:0.53161397670549/rt:force/w:432/h:243/fn:Y3NtX1BlcnNvbmVuX0dlc2VsbHNjaGFmdF9Tb3ppYWxlc19mcmVpX2VlMTEwNGE5MDE:t/cb:0da8c1a35b97615fb59658d891511424f4ab70c5/bG9jYWw6L2ZpbGVhZG1pbi9CaWxkZXIvMDJfSWNvbnMvSWNvbnNfMTZfOS9nZWxiL1BlcnNvbmVuX0dlc2VsbHNjaGFmdF9Tb3ppYWxlc19mcmVpLnBuZw) #### \[Translate to Englisch:\] „Bestand neu gestalten! Perspektiven für bezahlbares Wohnen in der Stadt" Besuchen Sie unsere Fachkonferenz am 1. Oktober 2026 in Berlin. [Programm und Anmeldung](https://www.plattform-bauen-und-wohnen.de/wissenswertes/fachkonferenz-bestand-neu-gestalten-perspektiven-fuer-bezahlbares-wohnen-in-der-stadt/) ![](https://shimazaki-kanta.toujou.website/_assets/processed/aNE0Le5l3fpFpmWq462_G0147r9SKU_c248RcdFGjjg/q:85/c:1516.956956957:853.16805324459:fp:0.498998998999:0.53161397670549/rt:force/w:432/h:243/fn:Y3NtX0VyZm9sZ19uZXVlX0VyZ2Vibmlzc2VfZXJzdGVsbHRlX01hdGVyaWFsaWVuX2ZyZWlfODc4NmMyYmJhOA:t/cb:d4ca5706d63defa26730ad104ecf17a2f5f5ae18/bG9jYWw6L2ZpbGVhZG1pbi9CaWxkZXIvMDJfSWNvbnMvSWNvbnNfMTZfOS9nZWxiL0VyZm9sZ19uZXVlX0VyZ2Vibmlzc2VfZXJzdGVsbHRlX01hdGVyaWFsaWVuX2ZyZWkucG5n) #### \[Translate to Englisch:\] Handlungsoptionen für mehr bezahlbares Wohnen im Bestand Lesen Sie unsere acatech IMPULSE für Bund, Länder und Kommunen in der Lang- oder Kurzfassung. 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