Dresden (dpa/sn) - The association of the housing and real estate industry in Saxony sees its members in the lurch in the impending energy crisis. Criticism of the new Energy Security Act flared up on Friday. The association spoke of "warm words instead of warm apartments". The law only supports energy companies, without questioning their purchasing strategy, and passes the costs on to the housing industry and tenants alone, the association said in a statement. The reform of the law allows energy suppliers to pass on the significantly increased gas prices to customers much more easily, should there be a further shortage.
"Even now, the energy suppliers will charge an increase in the district heating costs of the real estate industry, in Dresden alone by 300 percent," it said. The housing companies in particular would thus be pushed even more into an extreme "sandwich position", since they are the debt collection company for the energy suppliers and in the worst case - for example if the tenants are unable to pay - are left with the costs. "Specifically, for a housing company, for example, this means pre-financing 1.4 million euros in additional costs for 1,000 residential units and 1,440 euros more per year for the tenant of a classic average apartment. Who is going to finance that?" asked association director Rainer Seifert.
The new law does not protect the tenants, but the energy suppliers, it said. The entire energy and price risk is therefore borne by the housing and real estate industry. "Just as the state protects the energy suppliers, it must also protect the tenants at the same time. Because it is not just about economics, it must also and above all be about human existence," emphasized Seifert.
The association of the housing and real estate industry in Saxony represents almost 130 housing companies, which with more than 300,000 apartments have almost a quarter of the rental apartments in the state in their portfolio.
