German housing foreclosures spike as refinancing costs rise

Germany’s property foreclosure market is picking up pace again, with the number of distressed residential assets climbing for the second consecutive year. In the first half of 2025, 7,240 properties with a combined market value of €2.23 billion were brought to auction, according to the latest half-yearly report from specialist publisher Argetra Verlag. That marks a 4.8% increase over the same period in 2024.

If the current trajectory continues, Argetra expects around 14,500 auction dates for the full year—up 7.8% compared to 2024, which itself recorded a 9% rise over 2023. But only around half of these auctions end up taking place in court, with the remainder sold privately in advance.

The report links the rise in forced sales to broader economic fragilities. Creditreform recorded a 6.6% jump in consumer insolvencies to 37,700 cases in H1 2025, while company insolvencies were up 9.4%. Meanwhile, refinancing is becoming more expensive: ten-year construction loans averaged 3.5% in June, up from 3.3% six months earlier—and nearly 50% higher than the 2.5% average a decade ago.

Residential property continues to dominate foreclosure activity. Houses and flats together accounted for 69% of all forced sales, with single-family and two-family homes representing the largest share at 49.9%. The average market value of auctioned properties fell by 2% year-on-year to €307,679, though regional disparities remain extreme—from €93,000 in Thuringia to €870,000 in Berlin. In Hamburg, the average value was €840,000.

Berlin also leads the national rankings by volume, with 189 court-ordered auctions in the first half of the year. It is followed by Chemnitz (101), Munich (96), Leipzig (95), and Zwickau. Notably, 14 of the 40 cities with the most foreclosures have fewer than 50,000 inhabitants. NRW remains the dominant federal state, accounting for 19% of all auctions nationwide.

Partition auctions, typically used to dissolve co-ownership among heirs or divorcing spouses, remain significant but are slightly declining. They accounted for 37% of total market value—around €900 million—but their share has edged down from 40% the previous year. In total, partition cases affected 59% of properties and 38% of all houses sold via foreclosure.

Although property prices have begun recovering in parts of the market, the foreclosure segment remains decoupled from broader trends, with values still under pressure in many regions. Argetra notes that banks may need to rethink long-standing assumptions about the low-risk nature of financing single-family homes and condominiums, which now account for the bulk of distressed cases.

With economic headwinds, rising insolvencies, and tightening credit conditions, the resurgence in forced sales could be more than cyclical. Banks face growing non-performing loan exposure, municipalities risk erosion of their property tax base, and investors must brace for valuation volatility. For opportunistic buyers with the patience to navigate Germany’s intricate foreclosure system, deals may yet be found—but, as always, few illusions about snapping up bargains should be harboured.