Additional costs on the rise: Leipzig remains on the price brake!
Development of additional housing costs in the Wittmund district: increase of 13.6% in 2024. Prices compared to other regions.

Additional costs on the rise: Leipzig remains on the price brake!
The additional housing costs in Germany have increased slightly compared to 2023. Loud Konii Costs rose only moderately in most regions, while metropolises such as Düsseldorf recorded the strongest increase. Here, additional costs climbed by 2.3% to 3.21 euros per square meter. In contrast, Leipzig experienced a slight decrease of 0.5%, bringing the cost down to 3.00 euros.
The analysis is based on an examination of around two million rental apartment offers by Real Estate Pilot AG's GeoMap. In the vast majority of cities the change remained below two percent. While an increase of 1.5% to 3.21 euros per square meter was recorded in Essen, prices in Berlin rose from 3.55 to 3.57 euros.
Different trends in rural and urban regions
In rural areas the situation is completely different. Some counties saw drastic increases. The rental price in the Wittmund district rose by a whopping 13.6% to 2.42 euros per square meter, while in Pirmasens an increase of 9.3% to 2.30 euros was achieved. This shows that the burden of additional costs has risen sharply for many renters in these regions.
At the same time, there are also bright spots: in regions such as the Birkenfeld and Speyer districts, costs were reduced by 6.2% and 5.9% respectively. These declines indicate an easing in energy and heating costs, particularly in areas with modern or well-renovated properties.
The challenges in the housing market
The situation on the housing market remains tense. As in the blog by Quis described, we will face enormous challenges at the beginning of 2025. Rents in metropolitan areas are growing faster than incomes, and this development has particularly hit lower-income households hard. Existing tenants are often better off because they benefit from more stable rents.
Unfortunately, the number of new buildings has also fallen and the supply of living space cannot keep up with demand. Migrant households are particularly affected, as they are often confronted with rising rental costs. In the eastern federal states, however, prices appear to be stable or even falling slightly. So there seems to be a slight silver lining in the housing market, even if the overall situation remains critical.
In summary, it can be said that developments on the housing market in Germany vary greatly from region to region. While some cities and districts are experiencing significant price increases, there are also regions in which additional costs are falling. This mix of challenges and opportunities ensures that the discussion about affordable housing remains explosive.