Grüne on housing

The Greens want a €2 billion state program to promote housing construction and increase the number of social housing units every year. In the party's view, housing should not be left to the market alone; more homes are to be publicly owned.

The Greens want more affordable homes. The state should spend 2 billion euros on this. There should be more social housing every year. Social housing means low-cost homes for people with little money.

State-owned land is to be granted mainly on long-term ground leases or passed to municipalities at reduced prices. The plan includes 10,000 rental units with rent restrictions lasting 50 years; restrictions are to last longer and be harder to end early. Funding is to deliver more wheelchair-accessible homes and housing for trainees and students. The state-owned Nassauische Heimstätte keeps its cap on rent increases for low and middle incomes, and the state may buy large portfolios from housing companies. Serial construction and the simplified "building type E" are meant to cut building costs.

The Greens want a state law allowing municipalities to act against the misuse of residential space. Homes are to serve as permanent residences rather than stand empty or be used as offices or vacation rentals.

Homes should be for living in. They should not stand empty. They should not be offices or vacation rentals for good. The Greens want a new law for this.

The platform cites Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg as models. Vacancies are to be recorded systematically, and municipalities are to be allowed to require a permit for converting residential space. Vacant, suitable office space is also to be recorded and examined for conversion into housing.

The Greens want to protect tenants from disproportionate rent increases and call for changes to federal law. These include reformed tenancy law, a more effective Mietpreisbremse (rent brake) and lower caps on rent increases.

Rents should not rise too much. The Greens want stricter federal rules for this. The rent brake should work better. Bills for extra housing costs should be clear.

The platform describes housing as a basic right. Beyond steps at the state level, the party considers federal legislation necessary. The cap that limits rent increases in existing leases is to be lowered in tight housing markets. Utility and service charge statements are to be more transparent.

The Greens want to back housing models geared to the common good with a dedicated funding program. Communal, cooperative and mixed-age housing projects are meant to help older people and people with disabilities live independently in familiar surroundings.

The Greens want to support new ways of living together. There will be a special funding program for this. One example is homes where young and old people live together. This helps older people live on their own for longer.

The program calls for a state funding scheme for housing models geared to the common good. The state advisory office for communal housing is to be kept permanently. The "Wohnen für Hilfe" (housing for help) model, in which older or ill landlords rent cheaply to people who assist them, is to be strengthened by removing tax obstacles at federal and state level. The program also relies on socially mixed neighborhoods, co-working spaces in smaller towns, and modular construction that seals little land.

The Greens want to help municipalities with advice, digitalization and more skilled staff in building departments so that planning, climate protection and heritage tasks are handled faster. Local advisory offices are meant to encourage renovating and extending existing buildings.

The Greens want to help towns and cities with building. Building offices should get more skilled staff. Advice centers should help people renovate. To renovate means to renew an old house.

The program plans new dialogue and advisory services and support for initiatives that strengthen village and town centers in rural areas. A staffing drive is meant to relieve building departments, and the state wants to support digitalization in construction. Instead of new land, spaces inside existing settlements should be used. The energy-focused neighborhood renovation in the Werra-Meißner district is to serve as a model for other regions. The Allianz für Wohnen in Hessen (housing alliance) is to be made permanent, and small private owners are also to get help with modernization.

The Greens want to provide subsidized housing for at least one in ten students in Hesse, putting the state above the national average. At the federal level, the party wants more students to qualify for BAföG (federal student aid) and a housing supplement that depends on the place of study.

The Greens want more affordable housing for students. At least 10 in 100 students should have subsidized housing. More students should get student aid. In expensive cities, there should be extra money for rent.

Together with municipalities, further options for student housing are to be created. The Greens want to push for joint federal-state programs to expand it. The location-based housing supplement in BAföG is meant to help students in high-rent areas such as the Rhine-Main region. The platform notes that Hesse previously ranked last nationwide in student housing.