The Bochum real estate giant Vonovia owns around 565,000 apartments, mostly in Germany Photo: picture alliance / Wolfram Steinberg
From BZ/dpa
Vonovia boss Buch promises to help tenants in view of increased heating and hot water costs.
When presenting the quarterly figures, CEO Rolf Buch said that many people are very concerned that they will no longer be able to bear the increased costs for heating due to the current energy crisis.
Vonovia will find a solution together with the tenants if someone can no longer afford their apartment due to increased heating and hot water costs. The company has found similar solutions since the beginning of the corona pandemic.
In order to save as much natural gas as possible in the stocks, Vonovia has decided to lower the heating temperature for gas central heating at night within the legally prescribed framework, the company announced. In this way, the real estate group relieves tenants of the foreseeable sharp rise in energy costs and the environment. In addition, Vonovia adjusts the advance payments in order to avoid high additional claims at the end of the year.
Operating profit increased
The takeover of Deutsche Wohnen gave Germany’s largest real estate group Vonovia a further boost. The company also benefits from its new buildings. Vonovia confirmed its annual targets for sales and earnings on Wednesday in Bochum.
In the first half of 2022, operating profit (FFO) increased by 36 percent year-on-year to EUR 1.06 billion, mainly thanks to the takeover of Deutsche Wohnen. At the end of June, the average rent rose to EUR 7.44 per square meter – that was two percent more than a year earlier. Modernized apartments in particular contributed to the growth.
The companies can partially pass on the costs of energy-related renovations such as thermal insulation and the replacement of old heating systems and windows to the rent. Sales climbed in the first six months by almost 35 percent to 3.1 billion euros.