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How do supply and demand for rooms in shared apartments develop ahead of the start of the semester? Data from 91��Ƶ show that competition for rooms regularly increases considerably during the summer in German university cities. Particularly in August, newly published listings receive significantly more enquiries than they did in June.

91��Ƶ analyses listings, written enquiries and published room wanted ads to track developments in Germany’s shared housing market. The focus is on how the available supply of rooms and demand change in the months leading up to the winter semester.

This page brings together developments since 2024, current market analyses and regional findings. The data support journalists and editorial teams researching student housing, the search for rooms in shared apartments and the housing situation in German university cities.

Searching for a room ahead of the winter semester: Development since 2024

The seasonal increase in demand can be seen in all three years analysed so far. Between June and August 2024, written enquiries per room listing increased by around 121 percent. Over the same period, the increase was around 118 percent in 2025 and around 107 percent in 2026.

In all three years, competition for individual rooms increased considerably more between June and August than the number of newly published listings. The analysis is based on a fixed group of 26 German university cities with a sufficiently large data basis in all three years.

The results describe a recurring seasonal pattern. They do not show that demand is continuously increasing from year to year. They do, however, show that competition for rooms in shared apartments regularly intensifies within just a few weeks ahead of the winter semester.

Supply peaks earlier than demand

In all three years analysed, the largest number of new room listings was published in July. In August, supply declined again compared with the previous month: by around 15 percent in 2024, around 16 percent in 2025 and around 7 percent in 2026.

Demand developed in the opposite direction. Enquiries per listing increased from July to August by around 85 percent in 2024, around 80 percent in 2025 and around 64 percent in 2026. The strongest competition therefore occurred at a time when fewer new rooms were already coming onto the market.

“Our data show the same pattern in three consecutive years: the supply of rooms in shared apartments already peaks in July, while demand continues to rise considerably into August. For many students, the most difficult phase of their search therefore begins precisely when fewer new rooms are being published.”

Annegret Mülbaier, Press & PR at 91��Ƶ

Considerable differences between university cities

The extent to which demand increases ahead of the winter semester varies between individual university cities. A particularly pronounced seasonal effect can be seen in Aachen, Göttingen, Heidelberg, Münster and Tübingen: in each of these cities, room listings received more than three times as many written enquiries in August as in June in 2024, 2025 and 2026.

Which cities are particularly affected can change from year to year. In our annual analyses, we therefore examine regional differences, notable university locations and the relationship between new listings and written enquiries alongside the overall development.

For journalists and editorial teams, we can provide additional analyses for individual cities and regions on request and place local developments in supply and demand into context.

Room wanted ads as an additional indicator of demand

Alongside written enquiries, we also analyse the number of newly published room wanted ads. These also increase considerably ahead of the winter semester. Between June and August, their number rose by around 107 percent in 2024, around 88 percent in 2025 and around 167 percent in 2026 across the cities analysed.

Room wanted ads do not capture demand in full, however, as not everyone looking for accommodation publishes their own wanted ad. Some people use this option additionally, particularly during periods of intense competition, to improve their chances of finding a room. Our primary measure of demand is therefore the number of written enquiries that newly published listings receive within their first seven days.

How 91��Ƶ measures demand for rooms in shared apartments

Demand is measured using new written enquiries sent via 91��Ƶ in response to a room listing. To make listings comparable regardless of how long they remain online, we consider the first seven days after publication.

An enquiry is counted when a new written conversation is started in response to a listing. Multiple messages within the same conversation are not counted as separate new enquiries. Telephone contacts and enquiries made outside 91��Ƶ are not included.

Frequently asked questions about supply and demand for rooms in shared apartments

Do you need additional data?

Additional regional analyses and historical comparisons on supply and demand are available to the media depending on the specific request. Contact us at pr@wg-gesucht.de.

Methodology

The analysis covers June, July and August 2024, 2025 and 2026 and is based on a fixed group of 26 German university cities. In each city, at least 200 new room listings were published in every month analysed.

Accounts that published more than 200 new listings during the respective three-month period were excluded so that unusually large bulk uploads by individual providers would not disproportionately affect the results. The combined averages were weighted according to the number of listings included.

The figures describe activity on 91��Ƶ and should not be interpreted as a complete measure of the entire German shared housing market.

Latest analysis

Our latest analysis examines how the search for shared accommodation developed ahead of the winter semester 2026/27, including current figures on new listings, written enquiries and regional differences:

Shared-apartment supply and demand ahead of the winter semester 2026/27

Further data on the student housing market

Long-term analyses of rents for rooms in shared apartments and regional differences between German university locations are available in our section on student housing costs in Germany.