10 facts about moving in Germany

1. There are 25,000 moves per day in this country

25,000 people move house every day in Germany. Over 9 million Germans move house every year.

The leader among the federal states is Lower Saxony with a share of 10.5% in 2017, followed by Saarland with 10.1% and Bremen with 9.9%.

This is the conclusion of an analysis by the energy service provider Techem, which was published in June 2018 and is available on Statista.com.

Across all federal states, the average relocation rate in 2017 was around 8.8%.

There were particularly few moves among tenants in the city-states of Berlin and Hamburg.

The relocation rate here was only 5.9% and 7.4% respectively.

2. Preparation starts 1-2 months before

A move should be planned well in advance so that everything runs smoothly later on.

According to the 2021 relocation study by Deutsche Post Adress, 30% of respondents start preparations 1-2 months before the move, i.e. relatively early.

18% start preparations 3-4 months in advance and a full 16% start planning more than 5 months before the move.

38% of respondents take the move lightly: 23% only start preparations 2 to 4 weeks beforehand and 15% only 2 weeks beforehand.

Property owners tend to start planning earlier than tenants.

A tip: Create a moving checklist so that you don’t forget anything.

3. Germans aged between 18 and 29 move most frequently

Younger people move more often than older people.

Of the 1,038 respondents to the 2021 relocation study by Deutsche Post Adress who had moved in the last 12 months, 45% were aged between 18 and 29.

At 57%, the proportion of women was higher than the proportion of men (43%).

In the north (38%) and south (44%), people moved much more frequently than in the east (only 21%).

A large proportion, namely 50% of the 1,038 respondents who had moved in the last 12 months, had a high level of education.

According to an article by EnBW, Germans move house on average almost 5 times in their lifetime.

4. Love is the most common reason for moving

According to a survey published on statista.com in June 2018 by Immowelt and Umzugsauktion.de, there are many reasons for moving as an adult.

• According to the survey, 59% of respondents decided to move because of a relationship or love.
• This is immediately followed by relocation for family reasons (56%).
• 49% of respondents have moved house at least once in their lives for professional reasons.

Other reasons for moving as an adult:

• Because of a property purchase, say 49% of respondents
• For housing-related reasons, 43% of respondents say
• 42% of respondents cite training as a reason for moving

And when will Germans move into their first home?

According to a study conducted by the opinion research institute TNS-Emnid in 2018, 71% of respondents move out of their homes by the age of 25.

At 40%, women are significantly more likely to take the step than men (32%).

Over two-thirds of 14 to 29-year-olds still live with their parents.

5. July and August are the most common times to move

It’s probably no great surprise that people move house more often in the warmer months than in the colder months.

Overall, however, the distribution of nationwide parades across the four seasons is almost balanced.

This is the result of an anonymized analysis of forwarding orders from Deutsche Post Adress GmbH & Co. KG.

Accordingly, 25.4% of people in Germany move in spring, 27.5% in summer, 24.8% in autumn and 22.4% in winter.

The most popular moving day is Saturday and the most popular months are July and August.

In particular, the start of studies and training leads to an increased number of relocations.

The fewest parades take place in November and February.

6. The average distance: 40 km

More than half of moves (50.4%) in Germany take place within their city or municipality, according to the results of the relocation study by Deutsche Post Adress Gmbh & Co. KG.

The average moving distance is 1.9 kilometers in urban areas and 77 kilometers out of town, making an average of 39 kilometers.

67.2% of moves take place within a district and 86.6% within a federal state.

International moves are even rarer (1.5%).

7. A local move costs around 500 Euro

The average cost of a move depends on many different factors.

Decisive factors are, for example, the location and size of the property in question, the size of the goods to be moved and the distance to be traveled.

Of course, it also makes a difference whether the move is carried out on your own or by a professional removal company.

Booked additional services such as an assembly service, painting work, or clearing out add to the costs.

With a living space of 60 square meters and a distance of approx. 2 kilometers (local move), moving costs of approx. 500 euros can generally be expected.

At a distance of 80 kilometers, it is between 600 and 700 euros.

An inner-city move (approx. 10 kilometers) with a small living space of 28 square meters is often available for less than 300 euros from a professional removal company.

8. More than half find moving house stressful

For over half of those surveyed (56%) in the 2021 relocation study, moving house means stress above all else.

Only 20% say that moving is fun.

Nevertheless, people don’t like to leave the organization out of their hands – only 16% of those surveyed have the move organized by a professional.

However, three-quarters of those moving are looking for information about moving in advance.

9. Over two-thirds move independently

It’s up to the man or woman – that’s what many people moving house in Germany seem to think, especially the owners.

Only 20% of respondents to the 2021 relocation study hired a professional service provider for their move.

Just under half (47%) carry out the move completely on their own (i.e. including the transport of the removal goods).

A third (33%) hire a van or trailer.

Particularly popular services when using a professional removal company:

• Transport of the removal goods to the new residence (86%)
• Dismantling of furniture (66%)
• Provision of moving boxes (53%)

Incidentally, the items most likely to break during a move are electronics, mirrors, glass, and porcelain – so it is advisable to take out suitable insurance.

10. Schwalbe Moving Company – Real superheroes for every move

The removals company Schwalbe carries out a large number of removals every year in Berlin, Brandenburg, nationwide, and internationally.

The Berlin-based company ensures that every private or company operation runs smoothly and is well-coordinated, with friendly service, reasonable prices, and an initial offer plus free inspection.

Although there are no statistics, there are many positive customer reviews that speak in favor of Schwabe Removal Company as a competent service provider.

For example, the company achieved a score of 4.93 out of 5 stars (Very Good) with 165 ratings on the rating portal ProvenExpert.com and has been recognized as a “Top Service Provider” several times.

If you are planning to relocate, Schwabe Removal Company will be happy to contact you and answer any questions you may have.