EH55-Plus funding reaches 50,000 homes

On September 30, 2026, KfW announced that the reinstated Efficiency House 55 funding scheme had supported 50,000 homes so far.¹ The funding tier has been available since December 2025 and is intended particularly to help construction-ready housing projects proceed.¹ This provides a new interim assessment of a temporary instrument designed to reduce the construction backlog.¹

Funding commitments do not mean completed homes

The figure describes homes receiving funding, not 50,000 units already completed or occupied. Handelsblatt explicitly identifies the latest figures as funding commitments.² This distinction matters when assessing additional housing supply: a financing commitment and completed construction represent different project stages. Before the programme launched, the federal housing ministry had cited a construction backlog of approximately 760,000 homes. This includes approved projects awaiting completion and therefore cannot be equated with the number of eligible projects on which construction has not yet started.²

The housing ministry published an earlier interim assessment on February 27, 2026, when around 17,000 homes had received support.³ It also announced improved financing terms from March 2. At that time, it specified an effective annual interest rate of 1 percent for loans with a ten-year term and an equally long fixed-rate period.³ Those historical terms are not a current interest-rate offer. Comparing the two announcements nevertheless shows that the number of supported homes has since grown substantially.¹³

EH55-Plus combines new-build support with energy requirements

Launched on December 16, 2025, the scheme was established to support construction and first purchases of new residential buildings. It provides subsidised loans of up to €100,000 per home.⁴ The concept combines the Efficiency House 55 standard with heat generated entirely from renewable energy. Oil- or gas-based heating is therefore excluded.⁴ Support consequently addresses financing needs while also linking them to energy requirements. The original €800 million allocation represents subsidy funding, not the total value of all construction investment enabled by it.⁴

Applications must be submitted before the project begins. A valid building permit is generally required. For projects exempt from permit requirements, KfW describes an alternative: the building authority must have been informed and construction must be legally permissible.⁵ Municipalities can participate alongside private and commercial investors; the scheme offers them grants rather than exclusively subsidised loans.¹

Funding remains limited by the budget and year-end deadline

In June, the federal government and KfW extended the scheme beyond its original June 30, 2026 deadline. December 31, 2026 has since been the latest possible closing date. If federal funds are exhausted beforehand, funding ends earlier; there is no legal entitlement to support.⁵ Assessing September's figures therefore requires separating two issues: the number of funding commitments reached and the scheme's continuing limited availability. Commitments alone do not establish an equivalent increase in housing that is immediately available.²⁵