This is the first systematic evaluation of property ownership in Berlin and the various business models behind it. It opens the black box of large private property owners, about whom little has been known until now. The study describes hitherto unknown owners with more than 3,000 apartments as well as those who are below this threshold and about whom little is known so far.
"The study dispels the myth of the nice little private landlord as the main player in the real estate market, as well as the myth that selling condominiums to owner-occupants under current conditions contributes to social security and affordable housing," says study author Christoph Trautvetter, head of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's "Who owns the city?" project.
The uninterrupted price increases on the housing market bring the owners immense unearned returns of sometimes more than 20 percent a year. The study also compares business figures and practices of listed housing companies with their state-owned and cooperative counterparts.
"The sell-out of the city continues, although politically, especially by the Red-Red-Green Party, it is being resisted: for example, through the municipal right of first refusal, but also through the scandalisation of share deals and initiatives for more transparency. In the real estate market, both financial resources and access to information are very unevenly distributed. With its study on the disclosure of the ownership of real estate in Berlin, the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung is doing important political education work and is thus providing actors with the tools they need to inform themselves and defend themselves against the sell-off of their city," says Daniela Trochowski, executive director of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung.
The trial will be held on November 10, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. via Livestream will be presented. Participants: Christoph Trautvetter (author of the study, project leader "RLS-Cities - Who owns the city?"), Daniela Trochowski (executive director of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation), Carsten Schatz (co-chair of the parliamentary group DIE LINKE in the Berlin House of Representatives), Rouzbeh Taheri (representative of the IniForum Berlin and spokesperson for "Expropriating Deutsche Wohnen and Co"). Stefan Thimmel (Housing and Urban Policy Officer at the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation) will moderate.
Tenants can also contact www.wemgehoertdiestadt.de can dive into the data of the research with just a few clicks. The website contains further data on the owners presented in the study and on more than two hundred other players in the Berlin real estate market. It thus makes it easier for tenants to search for further clues about the homeowners on the basis of their address or the company they know.
Source: Rosa Luxemburg Foundation PM of 10.11.2020
"nWert", GLS Gemeinschaftsbank eG's sustainability rating tool for real estate, has been recognised by the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) as a sustainability rating. At the same time, GLS Bank recognises the DGNB certificate as proof when granting financing. This was announced by Dr. Christine Lemaitre of the DGNB and Dr. Matthias Morgenstern, GLS ImmoWert, on the occasion of Expo Real 2021 in Munich.
"The recognition of nValue by the DGNB is a nice confirmation of our way of thinking about sustainability in a really comprehensive way and developing a robust but also valid assessment system for it," says Dr Matthias Morgenstern from GLS ImmoWert GmbH. The net value of a building reflects sustainability at a high level of aggregation and contributes to the decision on financing. It also provides the bank's customers with an objective assessment of the building at a glance. They receive a report on the nValue with a presentation of the strengths and potentials of the building and thus have a roadmap to achieve even better sustainability. In total, the Bank's colleagues have already audited over 800 projects.
"As the largest social-ecological bank in Germany, we aim to value real estate not only in monetary terms. We also want to know what social and ecological impact the properties we lend to have," says Jan Köpper, Head of Impact Transparency at GLS Bank. That is why GLS Bank has developed the tool "nWert". With this tool, a transparent, measurable and comparable sustainability rating can be calculated specifically for real estate and the lending process.
"With the recognition of its sustainability rating by the DGNB, GLS Bank is building an important bridge towards greater uniformity in the assessment of sustainable building projects as a basis for their financing," says Dr Christine Lemaitre, Executive Director of the DGNB. "With almost 8000 award-winning building and neighbourhood projects, DGNB certification has established itself as the central sustainability standard in the construction sector in Germany and beyond in recent years. The recognition of GLS Bank's sustainability rating is a valuable building block here that ultimately benefits customers."
The recognition is reciprocal. If a customer approaches GLS Bank with a DGNB certificate and a request for financing, this certificate is equally proof for GLS Bank of the sustainable properties of the building.
For about four years now, GLS Bank has been determining the nValue for real estate in addition to the market value and the mortgage lending value. The degree to which the building complies with a sustainable model is determined by analysing documents, interviewing people with knowledge of the property and visiting the site. Around 50 indicators are collected and converted into a score from 0 to 100 %.
Federal Ministry for Climate Protection announces comprehensive emergency programme
Introduction
After a significant decline in the previous year, greenhouse gas emissions in Germany are on the rise again. Thus, around 762 million tonnes of greenhouse gases were released in 2021 - a good 33 million tonnes or 4.5 percent more than in 2020. Overall, emissions in Germany have thus fallen by 38.7 percent since 1990. The increase in the last year is particularly noticeable in the energy sector: This shows an increase of 27 million tonnes CO2-equivalents, as increased demand for electricity, lower electricity generation from renewable energies and the higher gas price led to increased use of coal for electricity generation. Electricity generation from renewables fell by seven per cent, mainly due to poor wind conditions. In the transport and building sectors, emissions were above the annual ceilings set by the Federal Climate Protection Act. This is shown by the latest calculations of the Federal Environment Agency (UBA), which are based on the specifications of the Federal Climate Protection Act and the EU-Renewable Energy Directive (RED) were presented today.
Climate State Secretary Patrick GraichenThe increase in greenhouse gas emissions has unfortunately become apparent. The Federal Government will now quickly counteract this with an immediate climate protection programme. The key is a much faster pace in the expansion of renewable energies. We must manage to install three times as much capacity as before in order to increase the share of renewables in electricity generation to 80% by 2030. There must be no more of the kind of stalemate we have seen in recent years. The Russian war of aggression on Ukraine has also made it dramatically clear to us how closely security and energy supply are linked. We can no longer afford to ignore this. That is why we must now quickly remove every stumbling block on the path to more wind and solar power. The faster shift away from fossil energies must encompass all sectors - from industrial production and buildings to mobility and agriculture. It is crucial to maintain the social balance in the process."
UBA-President Dirk Messner: "Almost half of the 2020 reduction in greenhouse gas emissions has already been lost. Our figures clearly show that the federal government's targets must be addressed as quickly as possible. We need to build more solar and wind power plants quickly. We must convert our buildings to heat pumps and stop installing oil and gas heating systems as soon as possible. We can also achieve a lot with our houses by saving energy, especially by making them more energy-efficient. This will also help to reduce our energy dependence on Russia. Each and every one of us can do something here that also helps the climate: heat a little less, leave the car parked more often or, if it is necessary, drive more slowly."
Current emission data in detail
Since 1990, emissions in Germany have fallen by 38.7 percent. The target for 2030 is a reduction of 65 percent. In 2021, there were increases in emissions compared to the previous year in almost all sectors. The available data show that since 2010, the energy transition in particular has contributed to the reduction of emissions. All other significant sectors have more or less stagnated since 2010.
In the sector Energy industry are with around 27 m. tonnes - this corresponds to 12.4 per cent more than in 2020. With around 247 tonnes, the m. Tons CO2-equivalents, however, emissions were still a good 11 m. There is no annual emission quantity for 2021 in the Federal Climate Protection Act for the energy sector. Emissions from hard coal and lignite-fired power generation increased particularly significantly due to the increased use of coal. The use of lower-emission natural gas, on the other hand, decreased in the second half of the year due to the significant increase in gas prices. The main reason for the increased use of fossil energy sources for electricity generation is the 17.5 TWh Significantly reduced electricity generation from renewable energies, in particular the lower wind power generation, and a 13.5 TWh increased gross electricity consumption.
At Traffic in 2021, around 148 m. Tons CO2-equivalents are emitted. This means that greenhouse gas emissions from this sector are both 1.2 per cent above the 2020 value and around 3 m. tonnes above the annual emission quantity of 145 tonnes permitted in the Federal Climate Protection Act for 2021. m. Tons CO2-equivalents. One reason for this is road freight traffic, which has risen again on the motorways to a level slightly above that of 2019. The CAR-In contrast, the level of traffic is still lower than before the Corona pandemic (2019), which is reflected in fuel sales figures and data from counting stations on motorways and trunk roads.
In the sector Industry emissions rose by a good 9 % compared to the previous year. m. Tons CO2-equivalents increased (plus 5.5 per cent). With around 181 m. Tons CO2-equivalents, they were almost at the 2019 level again, but just below the annual emission quantity of 182 m. Tons CO2- equivalents. Catching-up economic effects in the wake of the Corona crisis and increased use of fossil fuels play an important role here. The most significant percentage increase was in the steel industry, where crude steel production rose by around 12 percent. In the manufacturing industry (energy-related share), emissions increased by around seven m. Tons CO2-equivalents respectively 6.4 per cent.
At Buildings In 2021, there was an emission reduction of just under 4 m. Tons CO2-equivalents (minus 3.3 per cent) to around 115 m. Tons CO2-equivalents. Despite this reduction in emissions, the building sector, as in the previous year, exceeds the permitted annual emission quantity according to the Federal Climate Protection Act, which is 113 m. Tons CO2-equivalents. The reduction in emissions is mainly due to a special effect of significantly reduced heating oil purchases. Heating oil stocks were already increased extensively in 2019 and 2020 due to the favourable prices and in anticipation of the Fuel Emissions Trading Act. Natural gas consumption, on the other hand, increased due to the weather.
In the sector Agriculture Greenhouse gas emissions decreased by a good 1.2 m. Tons CO2-equivalents (minus 2.0 per cent) to 61 m. Tons CO2-equivalents. The sector thus remains significantly below the annual emission level of 68 m. Tons CO2-equivalents. The decline in animal numbers continues. Cattle numbers fell by 2.3 percent, pig numbers by 9.2 percent. As a result, there was less manure, which is why the emissions associated with fertilisation also fell (-4.0 percent compared to 2020). However, the significant undercutting of the set annual emission quantity is mainly due to methodological improvements in the calculation of emissions.
The emissions of the Waste sector fell by around 4.3 per cent compared to the previous year to a good eight per cent. m. Tons CO2-equivalents. This means that the waste sector once again remains below the annual emission level of nine m. Tons CO2-equivalents. The trend is essentially determined by the decreasing emissions from landfilling as a result of the ban on landfilling organic waste.
Further procedure under the Federal Climate Protection Act
The emission data for the year 2021 will now be reviewed by the Expert Council on Climate Issues, as provided for in the law. The expert council submits an assessment of the data within one month. After that, according to the law, the respective responsible ministries have three months to submit an emergency programme containing proposals for measures to bring the building sector and transport sector onto the intended target path in the coming years. However, the federal government is already working on an emergency climate protection programme that is intended to meet these requirements as far as possible.
Dirk Messner: "In order to achieve the German government's goals by 2030, six percent of emissions must now be reduced per year. Since 2010, the average has not even been two percent. To achieve this, Germany now needs a joint energy effort. Together, we must put all our energy into making ourselves independent of Russian energy and protecting our climate.
Current data on renewable energies
As early as 2020, the project, which was launched as part of the EU-Renewable Energies Directive (Renewable Energy DirectiveRED), Germany's binding target of 18 percent of gross final energy consumption was exceeded with 19.3 %. In 2021, the gross final energy consumption from renewable energies in the electricity, heating and transport sectors rose according to the calculation specifications of the RED further slightly to 483 Billion kWh an. This corresponded to a share of 19.7 per cent of total gross final energy consumption.
The main reason was that more renewable energies were used for heating and cooling due to the cold winter. For this reason - and because heating oil sales, which are decisive for the calculation of the share, also declined due to high inventories and rising oil prices - the share of renewable heat increased significantly from 15.3 to 16.5 percent in 2021. The heating and cooling sector accounts for more than half of Germany's total gross final energy consumption.
Electricity generation from renewable energies declined by seven percent in 2021 due to a comparatively poor wind year. At the same time, the expansion of onshore wind energy plants stagnated in recent years. The renewable share of gross electricity consumption fell accordingly from 45.2 percent in 2020 to 41.1 percent. Electricity consumption represents about a quarter of Germany's total gross final energy consumption. For the European monitoring according to RED the real decline in renewable electricity generation is, however, mitigated by a normalisation rule for compensating for weather effects over several years.
In the transport sector, the share of renewable energies in total final energy consumption fell from 7.6 percent in the previous year to 6.8 percent in 2021. This decline can be explained by special carry-over arrangements from earlier years under the greenhouse gas reduction quota and a higher crediting of upstream emission reductions. Transport is responsible for a good quarter of total energy consumption.
These and many other up-to-date and quality-assured data have been published in the background paper "Renewable Energies in Germany - Data on Development in 2021" by the Working Group on Renewable Energies Statistics (AGEE-Stat), which appeared today. The first available data on the use of renewable energies in the electricity, heat and transport sectors are supplemented by calculations on the associated avoided emissions and economic effects.
Further information: The accuracy of the data
The present emission data for the year 2021 represent the best possible calculation at present. They are associated with corresponding uncertainties, in particular due to the limited statistical calculation basis available at this time. The calculations are derived from a system of model calculations and trend updates of the detailed inventories of greenhouse gas emissions for 2020 published in January 2022.
The complete, official and detailed inventory data on greenhouse gas emissions in Germany for the year 2021 is published by the UBA in January 2023 with the transmission to the European Commission.
with the focus on species and climate protection, self-sufficiency with wind power and redensification
The project, initiated by the Bund für Umwelt und NaturschutThe BUND Yearbook Ecological Building & Renovation, published by BUND Deutschland (BUND), helps by making owners fit for discussions with the house bank, architect, energy consultant and craftsmen. The guidebook, which will be available from November, shows what can be done and how: Based on numerous house portraits, the annual compendium helps the reader to find out which measures, building materials and technologies are best suited to their own project.
Written in an understandable way and clearly presented, with many examples and suggestions, the 244-page "BUND Yearbook 2020 - Ecological Building and Renovation" offers an all-round service for builders and renovators. The booklet offers six topics: planning, model houses, green around the house, building envelope, building services and interior. Furthermore, state funding opportunities are presented.
The 244 A4-page handbook can be purchased at a price of 8.90 Euros at major kiosks, station bookstores and BUND offices.
Or (plus 2.00 Euro shipping costs) can be ordered from the publisher: Target marketing, Gerberstr. 5f, 70178 Stuttgart, Tel. 0711/96695-0, bestellungen@ziel-marketing.de.
The complete yearbook or individual articles can be ordered via the publisher's website www.ziel-marketing.de also available as pdf (5,99 Euro).
Mission 2020 is a global campaign, blending radical collaboration and relentless optimism to put emissions on a downward path by 2020. When it comes to our climate, timing is everything, and we have a game-changing opportunity to make the big changes now. Let's not be late for this turning point, so future generations can live in a climate safe world.
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Half of the city of Berlin belongs to multimillionaires. This is the conclusion of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's current study entitled "Who owns the city? Analysis of owner groups and their business practices on the Berlin real estate market".
