Property Transfer Tax in Bremen: 5.5% Explained
Grunderwerbsteuer in Bremen: rate, timing, exemptions and planning. Market data for Bremen. LDP Group currently buys in Berlin, Munich, Nuremberg, Erlangen, Fürth, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Frankfurt and Hamburg.
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Property Transfer Tax in Bremen: what to know
Bremen levies 5.5% Grunderwerbsteuer: mid-range among the 16 states (national span: 3.5% Bavaria to 6.5% NRW/Brandenburg/Saarland/Schleswig-Holstein). It falls due weeks after notarisation, and the land registry will not transfer ownership until the tax office issues its clearance certificate (Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung).
Planning notes: movable inventory (fitted kitchen, sauna) can be priced separately and escapes the tax if realistic; for rented property the tax joins your AfA depreciation basis. Entity structures: a law in force since 3 July 2026 made the reliefs for property partnerships (§§ 5, 6 GrEStG) permanent, and for share deals the signing of the contract is now the taxable event. Take tax advice before structuring.
The Bremen market in numbers
Bremen (Bremen) has 586,271 residents. Existing apartments average around €2,930/m² (citywide range roughly €1,850–€4,000/m²), with new-builds at about €5,890/m². Average asking cold rent is about €10.49/m², putting the gross rental yield near 4.3%.
Price momentum: +4.3% year-on-year. Asking prices peaked 2021 (~3,170 EUR/m2), corrected sharply 2022-2023 (-8.9% in 2023), bottomed 2024, recovering since; 5-year change roughly flat (-2.2%, immowelt). Official transaction data still showed resale condos -4.1% in 2024.
Vacancy: roughly 3.7% total vacancy, including flats that are not on the market (Zensus 2022, 15.05.2022). The market-active rate is lower, so this figure is not comparable with the market-active rates quoted for most other cities.
Where to buy in Bremen
Überseestadt, Schwachhausen and Viertel trade clearly above the city average; that is where investment demand concentrates. Value- and yield-oriented buyers look at Gröpelingen, which trades clearly below the city average, where gross yields are usually higher and management takes more work.
Schwachhausen: Bremen's classic upmarket quarter with Altbremer Haus townhouses, leafy streets and top schools: the city's most expensive large district. Apartments trade around €3,690–€4,010/m².
Viertel (Ostertor/Steintor): The bohemian 'Viertel' east of the old town: cafes, culture and Gründerzeit flats, prized by young professionals and students. Apartments trade around €3,360–€3,900/m².
Findorff: Popular family quarter of small Bremen row houses between Bürgerpark and the fairgrounds, with strong owner-occupier demand. Apartments trade around €3,100–€3,520/m².
Neustadt: Up-and-coming left-bank district opposite the old town, gentrifying around the airport-city and Hochschule Bremen campus. Apartments trade around €3,000–€3,290/m².
Überseestadt: Former harbour area turned waterfront regeneration zone: one of Europe's largest urban development projects, dominated by newer loft and new-build stock. Apartments trade around €3,300–€4,530/m².
Gröpelingen: Bremen's cheapest inner district in the industrial west: high-yield, socially mixed, with visible regeneration efforts along the Weser. Apartments trade around €1,750–€2,330/m².
The district bands come from separate sources and dates, so some sit outside the citywide range quoted above.
Taxes & buying costs in Bremen
Property transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer) in Bremen is 5.5%. Add approximately 2% for notary and land registry (statutory GNotKG fees), so purchase costs come to about 7.5% of the price; buying through an agent adds the buyer's commission (typically 2.98–3.57%). For a standard profile German banks do not finance these costs.
Held privately, the property can be sold tax-free after the 10-year Spekulationsfrist; before that, gains are taxed at your personal rate. Depreciation (AfA) shelters rental income: 2% p.a. for buildings completed 1925–2022 (2.5% before 1925), 3% for buildings completed from 2023, and qualifying new projects started between October 2023 and September 2029 can choose 5% degressive depreciation instead of the linear rate.
General information, not tax advice; LDP Group gives no tax advice.
Bremen is a designated tight housing market: the Mietpreisbremse caps new-lease rents at roughly 10% above the local comparative rent (Mietspiegel), and the reduced Kappungsgrenze limits in-tenancy increases to 15% within three years. Factor the achievable regulated rent, not the asking-rent headline, into your underwriting.
Data & sources
Figures from the sources named below, mostly portal asking prices, checked in July 2026. Asking prices typically run 5–15% above notarised transaction values: where both exist, the source basis is stated.
Population: Bevölkerungsfortschreibung (Destatis/Statistisches Landesamt Bremen) via Statista, 31.12.2024.
Purchase prices: immowelt Price Map, asking prices, 01.07.2026 (avg apartment 2,934 EUR/m2; district spread Rönnebeck ~1,841 to Schwachhausen ~4,006 EUR/m2).
Rents: immowelt Price Map, asking cold rents (Angebotsmieten), 01.07.2026 (range 6.69-18.58 EUR/m2; 2025 avg 10.29).
Yield: computed from price+rent above (10.49 x 12 / 2,934 x 100 = 4.29%), both immowelt asking data 07/2026.
Price trend: immowelt annual table (2025: 2,918 EUR/m2, +4.3% vs 2024).
Vacancy: Zensus 2022 (15.05.2022): ~13,655 of 364,795 dwellings vacant in Land Bremen = 3.7%, below national 4.3%.
Frequently asked questions
Can I avoid Grunderwerbsteuer legally?
For a normal single purchase, no: but you can carve out genuinely movable inventory, and direct transfers between spouses and direct relatives are exempt. Share-deal rules for companies were tightened in 2021, and since 3 July 2026 the signing is the taxable event; specialist advice is essential there.
Can foreigners buy investment property in Bremen?
Yes. Non-residents can buy property in Bremen without German citizenship or residency. Financing is available to expats and Blue Card holders; non-residents typically need 40–50% equity, while German tax residents usually bring 10–20% of the price (80–90% loan-to-value as standard, up to 100% with a strong income profile), plus the purchase costs in both cases.
What are the total buying costs in Bremen?
On top of the purchase price, budget 5.5% property transfer tax (Bremen) and about 2% notary and land registry, so about 7.5% in total. Where an agent is involved, the buyer's commission (typically 2.98–3.57%) comes on top.
What rental yield can I expect in Bremen?
Gross yields in Bremen average around 4.3%, higher in value districts such as Gröpelingen and lower in prime locations like Überseestadt.
How much is property per square metre in Bremen?
Existing apartments average about €2,930/m² to buy and roughly €10.49/m² cold rent per month, varying significantly by neighbourhood and condition.