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Protest against real estate companies in Berlin-Neukölln: Heimstaden also becomes the target of the expropriation vote with the purchase
Photo: IMAGO / Bildgehege
Tenants have suspected it for months, and now one of the large real estate groups has actually sold apartments in Berlin on a large scale.
Unimpressed by the results of the latest referendum on the expropriation of large housing groups, the real estate group Heimstaden from Sweden is taking over around 14,000 apartments in the capital.
Heimstaden announced that it is acquiring a total of 17,600 apartments in Berlin and Hamburg from Akelius;
According to Akelius, there are 14,050 in the capital and just under 3,600 in the Hanseatic city.
The deal is planned for the end of 2021, Heimstaden said.
A price was not mentioned.
The group is thus significantly expanding its housing stock in Germany.
So far, the group has owned around 7,300 apartments in Berlin, Halle, Magdeburg and Rostock.
According to its own information, the Swedish group owns around 116,000 apartments across Europe.
Heimstaden has been active in Germany since 2018.
"We are aware of the great responsibility that this growth step entails," said Germany boss Caroline Oelmann.
She announced a "tenant-friendly" construction of new apartments on the Akelius sites.
The decision is remarkable because on the day it was announced, a majority of voters (56.4 percent) in Berlin voted for the referendum »Expropriate Deutsche Wohnen & Co«.
The initiative wants to call on the Berlin Senate to work out a law that will transfer 240,000 apartments of the large real estate groups in Berlin to an institution under public law.
Giffey: Respect referendum on expropriations
According to the initiative's plans, all "private profit-oriented real estate companies" that own more than 3000 apartments in the capital, including Deutsche Wohnen, Vonovia and - new - Heimstaden, would be affected.
However, the referendum has no concrete law or constitutional amendment as its content, the result is therefore not binding.
The Senate is not obliged to draft a corresponding law on expropriation.
The Berlin SPD top candidate Franziska Giffey has accordingly announced that she will respect the successful referendum on the expropriation of large housing companies - but, even after the referendum, left no doubt that she does not believe in expropriations.
"Such a draft law must now also be drawn up," said Giffey on the RBB Inforadio.
"But this draft must then also be examined under constitutional law." The future Senate must look very carefully at what is constitutionally possible.
Giffey warned that Berlin should not get another negative judgment from the Federal Constitutional Court.
The highest German court had recently overturned the Berlin rent cap.
According to the Greens, a new Berlin Senate must also take the result of the referendum seriously.
"That belongs in coalition negotiations," said top candidate Bettina Jarasch.
Politicians have to check whether an implementation of the citizens' vote is feasible.
"But there are still many legal and practical questions to be clarified for such a law."
As an alternative, Jarasch promoted her concept of a "rental protection umbrella", ie a voluntary pact between politicians, landlords and other parties involved for new buildings and fair rents.
"It's up to the housing companies."
apr / dpa / AFP
