Housing approvals up by 11.7% in Germany since start of year

Germany's residential construction sector saw more positive news, with the number of approvals for new housing units from January to September 11.7% higher than in the same period last year.

New flats are a key part of Germany's solution to a housing shortage in urban centres, which is driving up prices and straining the rental market.

The data from the Federal Statistical Office showed there was a particularly high increase of 17.4% in approvals for new single-family homes.

Some 142,600 of the 175,600 newly approved housing units were in new residential buildings.

The remainder were approvals for extensions of existing residential buildings, or units within commercial buildings or care homes.

In September 2025 alone, the authorities approved 24,400 flats. That was 59.8% more than a year earlier.

The strong figures are partly the result of a low baseline: September 2024 saw the lowest monthly approvals since January 2012.

High interest rates and construction costs have put the brakes on residential construction in recent years. Last year, 251,900 housing units were completed in Germany, the lowest number since 2015.