Germany’s Left Party has reignited calls for a nationwide rent cap, citing new legal findings that suggest such a policy aligns with constitutional law.

The German Left Party has proposed a sweeping nationwide rent cap to address the country’s housing affordability crisis. In a motion unveiled on Thursday, the party urged the government to implement an immediate rent freeze, followed by permanent caps on rental prices. This renewed push is bolstered by a legal study commissioned by the Left Party, which concludes that a rent cap would be compatible with the German constitution and within federal jurisdiction.

Under the party’s proposal, the immediate freeze would prevent any rent increases in high-demand housing markets, while capping increases to six percent over three years in less pressured regions. The long-term nationwide plan would involve establishing local rental price ceilings based on average market rates. These limits would apply to both existing and new leases, protecting tenants from exorbitant increases and potentially reducing current rental costs that are deemed excessively high.

Caren Lay, the party’s housing policy spokesperson, argued that steep rents stem from corporate greed and political mismanagement, framing the crisis as solvable with decisive political action. However, critics, including members of Germany’s conservative bloc, warned that rent caps could stifle housing development and exacerbate scarcity. Despite the divide, constitutional expert Thorsten Kingreen’s legal study offers the Left Party a critical basis as it calls on the governing coalition to address what it describes as a national rental price emergency.