German proptech Plentific has produced a useful study on the market for 'micro-living' apartments in Germany. The Berlin-based company works with landlords and property managers to optimize their upkeep and maintenance schedules.
Micro-apartments are 1-room flats with a size of between about 18 sqm to about 42 sqm. Originally these residential properties were targeted primarily at students, but in the meantime, this type of property appeals to a diverse target group. In addition to students, micro-apartments are becoming increasingly popular with young professionals, singles, weekly commuters, tourists and senior citizens.
There are now more than 1,700 housing providers specialising in the micro-living segment, while many of the bigger project developers have also increased their provision of the smaller apartments. Over the next 10 years, the study predicts the number of micro-apartments will have increased by a further 75%, with the bigger urban areas and student cities seeing the bulk of the growth.
Among start-ups, a lot of companies are focusing on the temporary living sector, particularly in what the study calls the "ready-to-move-in" niche, where location and accessibility are a more decisive selling-point than the cost of the rent.
With the number of students in Germany rising, boosted by ever more foreign students, which has seen student number rising by 37% over the past ten years, there is still a big shortage of housing for the country's 2.9m students.
Additionally, the number of single households has also been steadily rising, from 34% in 1991 to 42% today. Germany Federal Statistics Office (Destatis) predicts that by 2030, 81% of households will consist of only one or two people. The Plentific study claims this trend is not likely to flatten out any time in the near future.