The Left Party in Berlin has proposed the expropriation of large real estate firms to address the city’s housing crisis. The plan targets companies owning more than 3,000 units, such as Vonovia and Deutsche Wohnen, by transferring their properties to public ownership. This proposal relies on Article 15 of the German constitution, a mechanism that has never been utilized.
Homeownership remains rare in the German capital, where only 15 percent of residents live in property they own. Purchasing a home in Berlin typically costs between seven and ten times the average annual salary. Nationwide, data indicates that three out of four Germans between the ages of 25 and 45 rent their homes. The political debate now centers on whether state intervention through mass expropriation could effectively lower costs or solve the city’s long-standing housing shortage.