1. Stuttgart is known as the "Cradle of the Automobile" because it is home to both Mercedes-Benz and Porsche. The city's automotive industry has played a crucial role in its development and economy. 2. Stuttgart has a unique wine culture, producing a variety of wines, particularly from the surrounding vineyards in the Stuttgart region. The city even hosts the Stuttgart Wine Festival, which attracts wine enthusiasts every year. 3. The city is built on a series of hills and valleys, giving it a distinctive topography. This has led to Stuttgart being one of the few cities in Germany where you can find vineyards within the city limits, offering stunning views and a blend of urban and rural landscapes.
Overview of Stuttgart's Housing Market
Stuttgart, the capital of Baden-Württemberg, is facing significant housing challenges. As of 2024, the city has approximately 317,000 rental apartments and a total housing stock of around 320,000 units.
Rental and Purchase Prices
Rental prices in Stuttgart range from approximately €13 to €19 per square meter, depending on location and apartment type. For purchasing apartments, prices range from about €3,800 to €6,200 per square meter.
Ownership vs. Rental
The exact percentage of homeowners versus renters in Stuttgart is not explicitly stated in the search results. However, given the high number of rental apartments, it's clear that a significant portion of Stuttgart's population rents their homes.
Public, Social, and Cooperative Housing
Social Housing
As of the end of 2020, Stuttgart had 16,250 subsidized housing units, including:
- 14,274 social rental apartments
- 582 subsidized rental apartments for middle-income earners
The city aims to maintain around 14,400 social housing units. However, the number of social housing units has been declining over the years due to expiring social commitments.
Public Housing
The Stuttgarter Wohnungs- und Städtebaugesellschaft (SWSG), the city's public housing company, manages approximately 20,000 apartments. This makes it one of the largest housing providers in the city.
Cooperative Housing
While specific numbers for cooperative housing are not provided in the search results, cooperatives are mentioned as part of the city's strategy to create affordable housing.
City Targets, Policies, and Activities
Stuttgart has set ambitious goals and implemented various policies to address housing affordability and sustainability:
- Housing Construction Target: The city aims to enable the construction of 20,000 new housing units by 2033.
- Stuttgart Inner Development Model (SIM): This policy requires developers to reserve a certain percentage of new construction projects for affordable housing, including social housing.
- Social Housing Quota: In larger inner-city development areas, the city has increased the quota for subsidized housing units to 80%, with 30% achieved through indirect occupancy.
- "Alliance for Housing": The city has formed a partnership with housing construction companies, building cooperatives, and interest groups to implement housing goals.
- Sustainable Building Site Management: Stuttgart employs various tools to identify housing potential, including a building gap registry and a "Housing Potential Analysis" for the entire settled urban area.
- Energy Partnership: The city is working on climate-neutral energy supply in neighborhoods based on municipal heat planning.
- WohnenPlus Program: This initiative aims to create 20 housing units per year through guarantee contracts for apartment owners.
- Inclusive Neighborhoods: The city is promoting the development of neighborhoods with a high proportion of barrier-free and age-appropriate housing.
- Extended Housing Subsidies: Stuttgart offers an additional subsidy of €300 per square meter of living space for newly constructed social rental apartments, on top of the existing land price reduction.
Promotion of Cooperative Housing
While the search results don't provide extensive details on Stuttgart's specific activities to promote cooperative housing, it's mentioned as part of the city's strategy to create affordable housing. The "Alliance for Housing" includes building cooperatives, indicating that the city is working with these organizations to achieve its housing goals.
Challenges and Future Outlook
Despite these efforts, Stuttgart continues to face housing challenges:
- Rising Prices: Both rental and purchase prices for housing in Stuttgart have been steadily increasing, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Limited New Construction: The city's topography (located in a basin) limits space for new construction, making it challenging to meet housing demand.
- Expiring Social Commitments: The city needs to find ways to extend expiring social housing commitments and create new ones to maintain its social housing stock.
- Demographic Changes: Stuttgart is experiencing population growth and changing household structures, with a dominance of one- and two-person households, which affects housing demand.
- Affordability Issues: 71% of people leaving Stuttgart do so because they can't find affordable housing.
In conclusion, while Stuttgart has implemented various strategies and policies to address its housing challenges, the city continues to grapple with affordability issues and limited housing supply. The success of its ambitious plans, including the construction of 20,000 new housing units by 2033, will be crucial in addressing these ongoing challenges.
Citations: [1] https://www.engelvoelkers.com/de-de/mietspiegel/baden-wuerttemberg/stuttgart/ [2] https://www.mcmakler.de/immobilienpreise/baden-wuerttemberg/stuttgart [3] https://www.immoportal.com/mietspiegel/stuttgart [4] https://www.immoportal.com/immobilienpreise/stuttgart [5] https://www.stuttgart.de/pressemitteilungen/juli/gutes-wohnen-in-stuttgart-stadt-und-wohnungswirtschaft-vereinbaren-neue-grundlagen-der-zusammenarbeit.php [6] https://www.stuttgart.de/service/aktuelle-meldungen/juli/gutes-wohnen-in-stuttgart-stadt-und-wohnungswirtschaft-vereinbaren-neue-grundlagen-der-zusammenarbeit.php [7] https://www.eib.org/en/projects/pipelines/all/20180897 [8] https://stm.baden-wuerttemberg.de/de/service/presse/meldung/pid/mehr-sozialwohnungen-in-baden-wuerttemberg [9] https://www.drklein.de/mieten-oder-kaufen.html [10] https://www.domino1.stuttgart.de/web/komunis/komunissde.nsf/fc223e09e4cb691ac125723c003bfb31/4e250e5fa71c0486c12586dc0023d0be/$FILE/c4101_.PDF [11] https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/baden-wuerttemberg/stuttgart/warum-zu-wenig-bezahlbare-wohnungen-in-stuttgart-100.html [12] https://www.stuttgart.de/medien/ibs/wohnungsbedarfsanalyse-stuttgart-2030-low-final.pdf