Berlin – The other day, Marianne Birthler, the former head of the Stasi records authority, said that she had bought a condominium in Mitte that she was still paying off. As an East German owner, she is in the minority at the inauguration meetings and house meetings in her neighborhood. If she finds out how many West Germans can afford a condominium, then that gives her “such a small pang”. In the text that appeared in the magazine of the Süddeutsche Zeitung, she added that she was ashamed of the feeling because she did not want to be envious.
Berlin publishing house
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The weekend edition
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https://berliner-zeitung.de/wochenendausgabe
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I knew exactly what she meant. In the past few years my circle of friends and acquaintances has separated: almost all West German friends and acquaintances own at least one property, often two, while East Germans live in rented apartments. The West German friends have the same jobs, often work less, but they have start-up capital from their parents, inheritances from relatives, and often a great deal of relaxation when it comes to money. With the East Germans it is the other way round: the children support their parents, pay for vacation, and major repairs.
And as much as I allow every friend to do it, there is sometimes a small feeling of bitterness, a pang, like with Marianne Birthler.
According to SZ, the 71 to 75-year-olds in the west have the highest reserves with an average of 206,000 euros. In the east, the younger generation were able to save a little after the fall of the Wall, the 51 to 55 year olds own around half of the western wealth, 103,900 euros. But the elderly, who have spent a large part of their adult life in the GDR, often have nothing to pass on. There were no real estate or shares in the GDR.
Even though I know all of this, I also look to myself to blame. In 2003 I came to London as a correspondent, a colleague from Spiegel said you had to buy something fast. Property? I was 28, had been an editor for three years, I had no savings and I lacked the experience, the knowledge. Land register, land registry, mortgage, those were words I had to look up. After the reunification, my parents had no money, they barely managed to pay off their building loan that they had taken out during the GDR era. Debt scared me.
1300 billion inherited as real estate
A colleague from the East, who came from a more privileged family and had already traveled to London and Paris during the GDR era, later said: “Sabine, you have to let your money work for you.” That is one of the core tenets of capitalism. My colleague also said that the property could always be sold on. I fail to buy my children’s used Brio trains.
Sometimes a friend sends me real estate ads, a house in a village in Brandenburg for half a million, she says it’s cheap. But you would need two cars. In the evening show I saw a couple who bought a five-room apartment in Steglitz, one million euros, both made very good salaries, but they can only make it with their parents, said the man who came from Hanover. It is much more difficult today than it was in the past to gain wealth through work than through inheritance. And those who inherit a lot are more likely to be West Germans.
The German Institute for Retirement Provision calculates that around 3,067 billion euros could be inherited from 2015 to 2024, of which 1,300 billion euros as real estate. A new east-west conflict is approaching us.
This text appeared in the weekend edition of the Berliner Zeitung – every Saturday at the kiosk or here as a subscription.
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