Hamburg’s housing market is under severe strain, marked by exorbitant rents, a scarcity of available apartments, and fierce competition among prospective tenants. Lara Schulschenk, a prominent content creator in Hamburg, has been actively addressing this crisis for years, leveraging her social media videos to amplify public awareness.
The Dire State of Hamburg’s Rental Market
According to the Hamburg Tenants’ Association, the city had over one million apartments by the end of 2024. However, the vacancy rate stands at a mere 0.5 percent, one of the lowest in Germany. Experts from the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) suggest that a healthy housing market requires a vacancy rate of approximately three to five percent. Furthermore, about 80 percent of Hamburg’s apartments are rentals, making the city more reliant on the rental market than many other major German cities, as noted by the Tenants’ Association.
Residents express their frustration, with many feeling that the situation is
