Study Commission on Housing Change and New Financial Investors
The Enquete Commission on Housing Change and New Financial Investors is a facility set up by the North Rhine-Westphalian state parliament to observe and investigate problem areas in the housing stock and urban districts. It was constituted for the first time on February 1, 2011. After the 15th state parliament was dissolved in March 2012, the study commission was re-established in the 16th legislative period at the request of the parliamentary groups of the SPD, Greens and Pirates.
tasks
The task of the study commission is to examine the problem areas in the housing stock and city quarters that have arisen in connection with the changes in the housing market, in particular through the involvement of international financial investors. In addition, recommendations for action are to be drawn up for the state government on how the impoverishment of parts of the city and the " junk property problem " can be countered with the resources of the housing industry and housing supervision .
New financial investors in the housing industry
Since the late 1990s, the interest of international financial investors in German housing associations has increased. Large housing stocks from public and private housing associations have now become the property of international investment funds. Their business models sometimes differ considerably from the previously common substance-oriented value creation patterns. Often the new owners, sometimes polemically referred to as “locusts”, raise the rents as much as possible and drastically reduce the maintenance costs as well as the administrative costs for the apartments. In addition, an attempt is made to raise the value of the housing stock to draw as much credit as possible in order to be able to operate with as little equity as possible and accordingly to maximize the return on equity. Some of the new investors are making additional profit from the tenant or individual privatization. Individual apartments are converted into condominiums and sold at a price well above the purchase price.
With these methods some of the financial investors achieve returns of up to 25% on the invested capital. However, this is only possible for a short time. The commitment of most private equity financial investors is therefore limited to a maximum period of 5–10 years; the housing associations are often resold as a whole or in part, even within a few months.
Deutsche Annington with approx. 217,000 apartments, GAGFAH with approx. 165,000 apartments and LEG with approx. 100,000 apartments are among the largest residential construction companies in Germany owned by private equity funds .
Effects on housing stocks and urban development
The Commission believes that the business practices of private equity housing companies described above lead to an increase in rents. At the same time, the condition of the settlements and houses deteriorates over longer periods of time due to insufficient maintenance costs. This leads to settlements and city districts that are not among the preferred residential areas anyway, being dragged further into the downward spiral. The so-called “ scrap real estate ”, which can no longer be sold or rented at the end of the exploitation chain, could lead to a loss in value of adjacent residential areas and thus contribute to a ghettoization process. In residential areas with rather strained housing markets, residential space is becoming significantly more expensive due to individual privatizations and “gentrification”, so that there is a lack of affordable housing. Overall, it can be assumed that the takeover of housing companies by private equity funds will further reinforce the generally prevailing trend towards social division in cities.
Objectives of the study commission
The problems outlined are to be examined in detail and ways in which the resources of the housing industry and housing supervision can be used to counteract the problems should be shown. In addition, a catalog with minimum requirements for the housing industry is to be created. For this purpose, a spatial examination of the tenants concerned is to be carried out. The approach of the housing supervisory authority and their scope for action are to be examined. The various strategies of the municipalities, as well as their room for maneuver in dealing with financial investors and junk real estate, are examined. The role of the housing industry and the possibilities of regulation are being examined. In addition, the impairment of tenant protection through multiple sales and a possible subsidization of private equity residential construction companies through the SGB 2 legislation is to be examined.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Study commission "Housing Industry Change" was constituted, February 1, 2011 ( Memento of February 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b c d e landtag.nrw.de: Appointment of a study commission "Housing industry change and new financial investors on the housing markets in North Rhine-Westphalia" (PDF; 169 kB; 6 pages), printed matter 15/477 of November 2, 2010, accessed on December 5, 2018.
- ↑ deutsche-annington.com
- ↑ About us ( Memento of the original from May 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from December 27, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ khd-research.net
