Housing Construction Subsidy – Rental Housing Promotion

The low-interest loan with an additional cost subsidy promotes the construction of affordable rental housing in underdeveloped areas of the city municipalities of Bremen and Bremerhaven. It targets natural and legal developers who build more than two rental apartments or row houses and secure at least 80% of the eligible costs for building land, construction costs, and ancillary construction costs through a loan of up to €110,000 per housing unit. In addition, a one-time grant of up to €15,000 per unit is provided. The 30-year binding period guarantees long-term affordable housing offers and enables social integration through mandatory social housing quota requirements. The application process is two-stage: an informal preliminary registration before construction begins with the Senator for Construction, Mobility and Urban Development, as well as the final application submission to Bremer Aufbau-Bank GmbH.

The funding objective targets low-income households and persons threatened by homelessness: at least 20% of the subsidized apartments are to be rented to persons in housing need, while income limits may not be exceeded by more than 60%. Prescribed minimum living areas are 25 m² per person, the energy standard must correspond at least to the KfW Efficiency House 55, and all units must be built barrier-free according to DIN 18040-2. Permissible initial rents range between €6.50 and €7.00 per m² cold rent depending on the efficiency standard; a surcharge of €0.70 is available for studio apartments. A personal contribution of 15% of the total costs as well as payment of the applicable minimum wage in the state of Bremen complete the funding requirements.