Immowelt study: Rents in the north are rising faster than inflation

In many northern German cities, the situation on the housing market has worsened further. A recent analysis by the internet brokerage portal Immowelt shows that rents in some cities rose by up to 11 percent between July 2022 and July 2024, while the inflation rate in the same period was 8.6 percent.

The increase is particularly evident in Hamburg, where the price per square meter for existing apartments from the 1990s now averages 14.01 euros, an increase of 6.1 percent compared to 2022. This unbridled price increase is linked to the city's strong population growth. In particular, the influx of refugees from Ukraine could put additional pressure on the already tight market. Despite demand, construction activity has not been able to keep pace, which led to an extremely small decline in new buildings of 85 percent last year.

Other cities are also facing rising rents. In Bremen, tenants now have to pay an average of 10.93 euros per square meter, an increase of 8.6 percent. Similar increases can be seen in Kiel with 8.1 percent and in Schwerin with 7.3 percent. In Hanover, however, the increase was more moderate at 4.0 percent, which is probably partly due to an increase in apartment extensions.

The strongest increases were recorded in Oldenburg, where rents have climbed by 11.5 percent to 9.71 euros per square meter since 2022. Osnabrück and Bremerhaven recorded the same double-digit increases of 11.2 and 10.5 percent respectively.

Despite this general trend, there are also cities such as Göttingen and Rostock where rents have only increased slightly. In Göttingen, the increase was only 1.4 percent, while in Rostock rents increased by only 0.7 percent.

The data for the analysis comes from offers advertised on Immowelt.de for existing apartments with two rooms and a size of 60 square meters.