Germany's Rental Crisis Exposed as #BetterLiving Campaign Gathers Thousands of Tenant Stories
How Satisfied Are People in Germany with Their Housing—and Where Do the Biggest Problems Lie?
ARD's participatory campaign #BetterLiving (#besserwohnen) brings together firsthand accounts from tenants across the country, painting a broad picture: from creative housing concepts and pragmatic everyday solutions to serious conflicts with landlords and property managers. The findings reveal that many renters face deep uncertainty. For countless households, rising rents and no-fault evictions for personal use by landlords have become a daily reality.
Take Iris Konopik, who has lived in a spacious, attractive apartment in Hamburg for two decades. Yet she has already begun searching for a smaller place because, once she retires in a few years, she won't be able to afford her current rent. The catch? Even smaller apartments cost more than what she pays now. This is what economists call the lock-in effect—tenants stay put because any move would mean higher rent.
More than 800 people took part in the campaign's non-representative survey. A statistical analysis of the responses reveals the everyday impact of the housing shortage: nearly half of participants said they ruled out moving due to current price levels, yet over 80% also reported being fundamentally satisfied with their housing situation.
The concluding documentary, "#BetterLiving: How Can We Stop the Rental Crisis?", examines the campaign's key insights and shines a light on systemic failures in Germany's housing market. It will air on Tuesday, March 31, at 10:50 p.m. on Das Erste and will also be available in the ARD Media Library.
The #BetterLiving campaign is based on a questionnaire developed in collaboration with the German Tenants' Association (Deutscher Mieterbund) and the investigative newsroom Correctiv. Since October, hundreds of participants have shared their experiences, covering essential aspects of renting—from the challenges of finding housing to their relationships with landlords and property managers.
Melanie Weber-Moritz, president of the German Tenants' Association, states: "The reports from this campaign clearly reflect what we at the German Tenants' Association have observed for years: many renters forgo exercising their legal rights out of fear of eviction or rent hikes. When people tolerate mold, water damage, or heating failures just to avoid conflict, it's a red flag for a severe power imbalance in the housing market. We need stronger legal protections, more consistent enforcement of tenant rights, and a significant increase in affordable housing—so that having a home means security again."
The documentary "#BetterLiving: How Can We Stop the Rental Crisis?" will present the campaign's findings on Tuesday, March 31, at 10:50 p.m. on Das Erste and in the ARD Media Library.
Until April 5, tenants are still invited to share their personal experiences as part of the #BetterLiving campaign at ard.de/betterliving.
