BAföG housing aid: Only enough for rent in one city – what this means for you

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents BAföG housing aid: Only enough for rent in one city – what this means for you.

At the start of the 2024/25 semester, students in Germany must once again budget more money for a shared apartment room or a small flat. The BAföG housing aid – that is, the flat-rate subsidy toward rent provided for under the Federal Training Assistance Act (Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz) – is only sufficient in a single city nationwide to actually cover local rent levels, according to an analysis by the Handelsblatt.

In all other university cities, there is a gap between what BAföG recipients receive as a housing allowance and what landlords actually charge. The differences between locations are "staggering," according to Handelsblatt – those studying in an expensive major city quickly pay many times more than what state aid covers.

What the BAföG housing aid actually is

The BAföG housing aid (also called the housing allowance) is a fixed amount within the BAföG rate that is paid out regardless of actual rent costs at the study location. When local rents rise, the subsidy stays the same – and it is precisely this discrepancy between a fixed allowance and rising rents that means students have to cover the difference themselves.

What this means for you in concrete terms

If you're currently looking for an apartment or room, it's worth taking an honest look at the BAföG rates: the housing aid is capped, rents are not. In expensive cities like Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt, or Berlin, the gap is particularly large; in smaller university towns it's smaller, but rarely zero.

In short: the BAföG housing aid does not cover your rent – it covers only part of it. You foot the rest yourself, through a side job, parents, a student loan, or a scholarship.

Source: Handelsblatt