Despite the interest rate turnaround

Why home ownership remains a dream for many

Owning your own four walls, especially for young people, is practically unaffordable

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/©Kzenon - stock.adobe.com (Symbolbild))

The demand for credit from private households has more than halved in recent years. In addition to price increases in real estate, this was mainly due to higher interest rates. The turnaround in interest rates has now been heralded and loans are becoming cheaper again. Nevertheless, property is likely to remain unaffordable for many. The "Krone" explains why.

Until the beginning of 2022, the interest rate policy of the European Central Bank (ECB) meant that loans were (almost) available at zero cost. For variable-rate contracts, the conditions were sometimes less than one percent per year. For fixed loans, when the refinancing interest rate of the banks (Euribor) was even negative, in the best cases you paid well under two percent per year.