New Report Shows Affordable Student Housing in Germany Continues to Be in High Demand

German National Association for Student Affairs (DSW) has said the demand for student housing in Germany continues to be high, but the supply rate for students with state-subsidized dormitory places is still less than 10 percent.

In its report named “Housing for students. Statistical overview 2022,” the association of Germany’s 57 student services organizations points out that there are 239,000 places for students nationwide subsided by the state, of which over 196,000 are of student unions, Erudera.com reports.

DSW said that the supply of student rooms subsidized by the state is not in line with the number of study places also supported by the state, and highlighted that the percentage of students in subsidized accommodation continues to be less than 10 percent, meaning it stands at 9.52 percent.

“The housing market in the university towns is strained to the breaking point. Housing remains a central social issue of our time. The prices for gas, electricity, heat and food are going through the roof. Affordable housing for students is therefore more urgently needed than ever. Dormitory places for students must be expanded,” DSW CEO Matthias Anbuhl said.

Data indicate that more than 14,000 places are expected to be built in halls of residence to meet students' high demand for affordable housing. For this, Anbuhl said political support is needed.

In a statement posted on the website of the association, Anbuhl said a total of €2.6 billion in federal and state support must be provided by 2027 to cover the construction of 25,000 extra living spaces as well as the renovation and modernization, but also for digital renovation of student union dorms.

“We expressly welcome the measures taken by the federal government, such as the Alliance for Affordable Housing, which we have also joined. The same applies to the “Junges Wohnen” program, with which the federal government wants to create more affordable housing for students from the beginning of 2023 with 500 million euros from the federal budget,” Anbuhl said.

In the past months, a study found that students in Germany were experiencing difficulties in covering shared housing due to high rent prices and called on the federal government to increase the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG) requirement rates and help students afford accommodation in the country.

Although the demand for student accommodation remains high, this year, Germany has experienced the first drop in the number of students since the 2007/08 academic year. According to data by Destatis, the number of students enrolled at German universities in winter 2022/23 dropped by 1.0 percent compared to a year earlier.