In the Otto-Hahn-Straße in Regensburg, almost 50 student flat shares fear for their existence.
A different pace was announced on the phone when renting out to shared apartments.
Regensburg - you are right next to the campus of the University of Regensburg * - the large apartment blocks in Otto-Hahn-Straße.
Traditionally, many student flat shares have been rented here for decades - there are currently almost 50 and thus almost half of all apartments there.
A small biotope of affordable living space that is already scarce in Regensburg.
But that could soon be over.
The Federal Agency for Real Estate Tasks, or BImA for short, has announced to several of those affected that it will no longer allow shared apartments in the previous form.
Student shared apartments in danger: those affected speak of "educational measures"
The law student Sofia (name changed by the editors) speaks visibly indignantly of "educational measures" in view of the new pace of federal property management.
The 20-year-old currently lives with four other people in a typical student flat-share on Otto-Hahn-Straße.
“The location is great.
And the rents are still affordable for us, ”she says.
According to their own statements, some tenants still have a lease from the 80s.
Sofia and her current roommates signed a new contract in 2019.
Before that, the last main tenant had moved out and BImA, at that time still represented by Treureal Property Management GmbH, took the opportunity to regulate the whole thing contractually.
That was all perfectly fine, says the law student.
But then they learned indirectly that, according to an email, the BImA no longer wanted to allow shared apartments in Otto-Hahn-Straße.
“I then called directly there,” says Sofia.
For a few months now, the BImA has had all tasks in its own hands again.
But apparently a somewhat chaotic file situation has been taken over from Treureal GmbH.
Flat shares in danger: landlady reprimands high fluctuation
An employee of the BImA explained to Sofia on the phone that the Federal Agency would no longer allow tenants to change within the shared apartments. Background: In shared apartments, all residents are often the main tenants with equal rights. And this is exactly where there is chaos, according to the BImA employee. In the phone call she spoke of "arbitrary rent changes" that they no longer want to allow. “You have to imagine that there are 21 tenants in one apartment,” Sofia quotes from the interview. She explained that these tenants did not all live in the apartment at the same time - but the employee did not react. Instead, she said that the rental contracts should never have been concluded in this form. However, it is not clear what exactly should not fit in the contracts.The contract is available to our editors.
The naturally significantly higher fluctuation of tenants in student flat shares seems to play a decisive role.
Moving in and out, and thus also changing tenants, are regularly on the agenda in view of semesters abroad or study periods for the Bachelor of just six semesters.
Every change of rent entails a bureaucratic act.
And that is what the BImA simply wants to avoid in the future, Sofia suspects.
"On the phone we were told relatively bluntly that they want to take action on something like that now."
(By the way: Our brand new Regensburg newsletter informs you about all developments and results from the world cultural heritage city about the upcoming federal election - and of course about all other important stories from Regensburg.)
Affordable living space on the brink: those affected want to defend themselves
Sofia's flat share could soon feel this. One of her roommates will be moving out soon. Since the BImA then does not want to accept a new additional main tenant, the room would have to remain empty. The rent for everyone else would go up significantly in one fell swoop. Alternatively, tenancy law would allow the room to be sublet. But the BImA also seems to want to put a stop to this.
“There will be no more subletting,” she was told on the phone, according to Sofia. Such subletting is generally permitted and could only be prohibited by the landlord, i.e. the BImA, if there are legitimate reasons. In plain language, this means that subletting is generally permitted and can only be prohibited for legitimate reasons. However, it must be reported to the landlord beforehand. A corresponding passage can also be found in the BImA lease.
"If you want to take the apartments away from the students, Regensburg * would lose more affordable housing for students here," says Sofia.
"We have already considered whether they want to renovate the aging apartments and therefore want us out." The students do not want to just let the matter happen.
In the meantime, a WhatsApp group has been founded in which those affected can exchange ideas.
They want to defend themselves against the action together.
WGs in danger?
No clear answer from the BImA
In an initial statement, the BImA points out that their apartments would “initially” serve to meet the housing needs of federal employees. “If it is not possible to rent it to someone with the right to care for the apartment, an apartment will be offered on the open market and, for example, to students or. Shared flats or rented out to individuals. ”There is also“ no distinction between tenants who live in shared flats and those who rent an apartment alone ”.
However, the federally owned institute refers several times to the problems that would arise from frequent tenant changes. On the other hand, the BImA does not comment on the specific allegations of those affected like Sofia, on the statements in the above-mentioned phone call and in general on whether one wants to reduce the number of shared apartments.
* Merkur.de / bayern is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA