Saxony extends rent freeze as planned

Saxony is extending the rent freeze for Dresden and Leipzig until mid-2027 as planned. The construction of affordable housing remains a key concern, said Infrastructure Minister Regina Kraushaar (CDU) after the cabinet meeting in Dresden. The regulation affects rental apartments in particularly sought-after locations - tenants are to be protected from excessive rents. Under the regulation, the rent at the start of a tenancy may not exceed the local comparative rent by more than ten percent. At the same time, the creation of additional living space is to be promoted.

Minister sees fair balance of interests

"When extending the rent freeze, we wanted to achieve a fair balance between the protection of tenants and the legitimate interests of property owners. The rent freeze brings relief to tenants in the tight housing markets of Leipzig and Dresden," emphasized Kraushaar. At the same time, housing construction must be stepped up further in order to secure significantly more affordable housing in the long term.

"For us, active housing construction that enables investment and creates incentives is the most sustainable way to stabilize the housing markets and make instruments such as the rent freeze superfluous," said Kraushaar.

Regulation only applies to Dresden and Leipzig

The existing regulation expires at the end of this year, the new regulation will come into force on January 1 of next year. This will ensure a seamless continuation of the rent freeze. It only applies to the cities of Dresden and Leipzig, where the housing market is particularly tight.

Greens and Left Party do not go far enough

"The rent freeze can at best curb the rise in rents, but further steps are necessary," emphasized Left Party politician Juliane Nagel. At federal level, her party is fighting against exceptions to this instrument, for example in the case of modernization or furnished rooms. Another effective instrument would be a nationwide rent cap, which would take effect in areas with a tight housing market and define rent caps, for example.

The Greens had previously criticized Saxony for not taking advantage of the time available to extend the rent freeze. "The federal government has made the extension until 2029 possible. The CDU is missing the opportunity in the Free State to give people in their rental apartments longer-term security," they said.