Efficiency Is Becoming Increasingly Important for Condominiums

August 20, 2026

Source: E & M powernews

High energy efficiency ratings for condominiums are increasingly reflected in high purchase prices, according to a survey by Postbank.

Energy efficiency is increasingly becoming a selling point when purchasing acondominium—and comes at a corresponding cost. However, the extent of these differences depends heavily on location.

This is shown by the “Postbank Housing Atlas 2026,” for which the Hamburg Institute of International Economics analyzed listings in all 400 German counties and independent cities. The study examined both existing and newly built apartments, with A+ being the highest rating and H the lowest.

In 92 regions, the share of condominiums on the market with energy efficiency ratings ranging from D to A+ is less than 30 percent. At the bottom of the ranking is the Görlitz district with 13.3 percent. Nationwide, 35 percent of the condominiums on the market fall into these efficiency classes.

Potsdam-Mittelmark (Brandenburg) has the highest proportion: there, 54.7 percent of the apartments surveyed fall into energy efficiency classes D through A+. It is followed by the districts of Plön (Schleswig-Holstein) at 53.3 percent, Börde (Saxony-Anhalt) at 52.9 percent, and the Saale-Holzland district (Thuringia) at 52 percent.

Among large cities with more than 100,000 residents, Trier has the highest proportion of apartments in energy efficiency classes D through A+, at 49.1 percent. The average purchase price for these apartments there is 4,422 euros per square meter. Next are Jena with 48.9 percent (4,281 euros per square meter) and Erlangen with 47 percent (5,363 euros per square meter). The study also notes comparatively low prices per square meter for more energy-efficient apartments in cities such as Chemnitz, with an average of 1,447 euros, and Bochum, with 2,715 euros.

Significant differences are evident in the price premiums. In Germany’s seven largest cities, apartments in classes A+ through D cost an average of 6,711 euros per square meter. Apartments in classes E through H are offered at an average of 1,337 euros per square meter less.

The difference is greatest in Hamburg. There, apartments with energy efficiency class D or better are priced at an average of 7,558 euros per square meter—that’s 1,893 euros more than for apartments in classes E through H. In Munich, the difference is 1,720 euros; in Frankfurt am Main, 1,599 euros. Cologne comes in at 1,155 euros, Düsseldorf at 1,129 euros, and Berlin at 1,092 euros. Among the seven major cities, the price premium is lowest in Stuttgart at 772 euros.

The differences are also significant outside the major cities. In 83 regions, the price premium for Class D apartments or better is at least 1,000 euros per square meter. In the Miesbach district (Bavaria), it is 3,133 euros. At the same time, there are 66 regions where the difference is less than 400 euros. In twelve regions, more energy-efficient apartments are, on average, even cheaper. In the Aurich district, for example, their asking price is 868 euros per square meter lower than that of apartments in Classes E through H.

Author: Stefan Sagmeister