On “Stern TV” a single secretary tells how much she is burdened by the current inflation. Because she has an Index rental contract, she fears that she will no longer be able to afford to live, despite her actually good salary. During the conversation, she bursts into tears.
These are worries that many people in Germany are currently having: How can life be paid for in the face of ever-increasing inflation? Food and energy prices are leading to significant additional spending.
There is another annoyance for Susanne Holzhütter: the single mother from Hamburg has an index lease. When she talks about “Stern TV” in the studio, she bursts into tears. Because it is clear to her that there will be a rent increase.
“The thing that scares me the most is that I’ll get sick and then not be able to pay for everything anymore,” says Susanne Holzhütter through tears. “I think I earn really well, but at the end of the month there is simply nothing left.” She already has to pay half of her salary for the rent: 1,400 euros.
The problem: With an index rental agreement, the amount of the rent is based on the cost of living of everyone in Germany. And these have of course increased significantly in recent months due to inflation.
The secretary is currently saving around 20 euros a month for her child. She now fears that her landlord will raise the rent by the same amount. “Then I slip into the red every month,” she says. And there is nothing left for her daughter. She is already saving herself a warm meal at lunchtime to make ends meet.
After all: Federal Building Minister Klara Geywitz (SPD) now wants to tackle the problem. In view of the high inflation, she wants to examine how tenants with index leases can be protected from excessive burdens. “Especially yield-oriented funds are not at all interested in whether their tenants are increasingly in need due to rising costs,” said the SPD politician in a recent interview. “In our deliberations on measures and instruments that curb or prevent the rise in rents, we will therefore continue to examine how index and graduated rents can do justice to their actual purpose without unfairly burdening tenants.”
That will probably be little consolation for Susanne Holzhütter. Because it will take a while before there are regulatory changes. Until then, the rent may be increased every year. Totally legal.
