Housing market
Airbnb bosses deny allegations of rising rental prices
11/25/2025 – 02:25Reading time: 1 minute.
Airbnb is raising rental prices in Berlin – that’s what many critics are accusing. The German leader strongly disagreed.
Airbnb is partly responsible for skyrocketing rental prices in Berlin – an accusation often leveled by renter advocates and political parties. The leadership of the German company now firmly rejects this. “To talk about Airbnb causing rental prices to rise is an adventure,” said Kathrin Anselm of media group Funke.
The manager relies on figures from the Fraunhofer Institute: According to these data, Airbnb apartments in Berlin account for only about 0.3 percent of the total housing stock. The proportion of long-term landlords is even lower: “Only 0.07 percent rent for more than 90 days,” Anselm said. About 80 percent of service providers are home renters who sometimes rent out their own apartments. “This practice does not eliminate the housing market.”
Anselm cast doubt on the DIW study showing a link between Airbnb and rising rental prices. This was based on “faulty attrition data and inappropriate methodology.” He cites Barcelona as a counterexample: There, Airbnb deals fell by a quarter between 2018 and 2024 — but rental prices still rose by 40 percent.
In his view, public attention “is focused on the wrong topic.” It’s easier to organize short-term rentals than worry about creating housing and fighting vacancy. Their core message: “Housing space is not created by banning short-term rentals.”
