Germany moves to ease building regulations to boost housing supply

Research institutes ARGE (Schleswig‑Holstein) and IFB (Niedersachsen) launched a “norms emergency” in Berlin, arguing that the growing number of complex building standards has added roughly €600‑€1,000 per square metre to new apartments – about 20% of the recent cost explosion – and is a major factor in the country's housing shortage. “The situation has long escalated. The norm‑frustration in the construction sector is enormous,” said ARGE‑Institute director Prof. Dietmar Walberg.

The federal government responded with a draft law creating a “building type E,” which would let developers and architects contractually waive non‑essential standards while keeping safety, health and climate protections. The aim is to cut construction costs, reduce bureaucratic workload and speed the delivery of affordable housing.

Both initiatives target the same problem: excessive regulation that drives up building costs and hampers the construction of the one‑third more dwellings Germany could potentially build.