No building plot can be found in the southern part of Schleswig-Holstein

And I also wonder why many owners of existing properties have not retrofitted long ago when photovoltaics is such a pure cash cow. Strange, isn't it?

Not strange. You just need an initial investment of €10,000 - that’s not just lying around, but has to be additionally financed. And in new builds, many think last about a photovoltaic system, which does not add any residential value. Better to think about special window colors on the outside (which you can't see from inside anyway) or KNX (only to operate the roller shutters after all) or other things and, if necessary, also order them.

And yes, photovoltaics is still attractive. I will get my investment (from equity) back in about 10.5 years without considering self-consumption. The system will go into operation on Wednesday. Considering the hybrid car arriving in 14 days and self-consumption, I expect amortization in about 6 years - after that the system is paid off and regularly puts cash into the account.

But it is also something different whether I get a + within 20 years or whether I save myself 20k investment capital right away.
That may be the difference between 100% or 90% financing.
Besides: inertia. A not to be underestimated trait of most people.

Yes, that may be true, although our population usually doesn't hesitate long if there's something to gain somewhere (scrappage bonus etc.).

Personally, I see no point in pampering families with child building subsidies on one hand and constantly imposing new building regulations and raising standards on the other, which then immediately consume the small plus again.
Everyone should be allowed to calculate for themselves whether an investment is worthwhile or not. If too few people take advantage of it, then the offer is simply not attractive enough yet. But acceptance cannot be increased by coercion and will only end in an endless cat-and-mouse game between loophole searching and ever new regulations and legislative amendments.

On the subject of prices, I suspect that the Hamburg metropolitan area unfortunately doesn't differ much here compared to Stuttgart or like with us here in Munich, just on a slightly lower level. So, if you pay the current prices, you definitely won't be the only "fool," there simply is no alternative and unfortunately you only have the choice between "staying in the rental apartment whose rent you still find reasonable" or "coping with insane real estate prices IF financially possible." The value is determined solely by supply and demand, and as it currently looks, the supply is politically deliberately not massively increased and demand does not seem to be abating anytime soon. In the sought-after big cities, inheritances still make many things possible, and even in Lower Bavarian backwaters, Polish BMW factory workers are now building one house after another (a mix of cheap land there, a lot of own work with great help from family, good shift premiums, and leveraged loans makes it possible). My parents paid around 350,000 Marks for our end terrace house at the beginning of the 80s (huge garden, 900m2 plot); recently, one of the neighbors died, and the same house type, which stood in the middle and only had a really small 100m2 garden, and honestly, was never refurbished and completely worn down, was now sold for 600,000€. "Junk," one would say at first glance, BUT: very good building substance, highway A 94 directly to Munich in 40 minutes, nice neighborhood, and very good schools nearby. The young couple in their early 30s could hardly believe their luck that through contacts to the daughter before the ad appeared on the real estate portal, they got it at this "bargain price." And even if it sounds crazy, the two are not stupid but extremely clever. The house looks old-fashioned at first glance and quite rundown inside, but if you know how beautiful the neighbors' other houses are inside, you recognize the potential, and with a little manual skill and 100,000 euros renovation money, you can make a lot out of it. While you can completely forget about a new build for 700,000€ in our area, I would not hastily rule out existing properties, depending on what is more important to you: the location, the single-family house as such, the urban-influenced neighbors, or a modern look?

Regarding the plot of land, I know many ways from acquaintances and friends: We ourselves had beginner's luck and were able to make a purchase contract for the entire plot from a planned semi-detached house (without an intermediary house provider and without being forced to build with them). A friend spent half a year five years ago in our home district 40 km from Munich digging in and letting absolutely everyone know through her parents and friends living there that she was looking for a plot and then got lucky with a private seller who heard about it. My sister-in-law did the same, involved the whole village in the house project, spoke with the mayor, networked, and was then the first to hear about the new development area. Still, it took three years overall and countless phone calls and rounds of price increases with the landlord until they can finally build there now. The total volume for the house with land (prefab house without much fuss, 500m2 land) is just under a million in a village in the Fürstenfeldbruck district; there is a kindergarten, a school, a church, and a bakery, but nothing else. No S-Bahn connection and one hour drive to work in Munich. But that is exactly what the two want: to stay in the place where they feel comfortable, real country life, peace, and not a commuter town of Munich with city people who are very different from the local rural population. A friend of my brother bought cheap building land in the sought-after neighboring town with train connection and future S-Bahn connection, took a gamble and was incredibly lucky: got the building permit for a single-family house and can now invest the full budget into the house.

However, there is also a clear counter-movement here; some of my girlfriends and their partners earn very well (Siemens, airport, BMW, consulting) and love city life and do not want to give it up. They all know that a house IN Munich with a garden without a large inheritance is simply not feasible and adapt: one bought a flat in the outskirts for a maximum of one child, another will remain a tenant in a large but affordable rental apartment with two children, and another will move within the company to another city and realize her dream of a house there.

So I would give you the tip to carefully consider what you want most as a family and what really makes you happy and then give your all for at least a year to increase your chances of finding a plot, a well-maintained existing house, a larger flat on the city outskirts with a garden share, or a building project. Think outside the box, actively ask around in your desired locations, involve people who already live there, and really look at a lot, even if at first it looks like "this is probably nothing." I didn't even want to look at our current plot at first, wasn't sure if I wanted to go that far to the outskirts and not rather want a rental apartment, and now I am so glad my boyfriend persuaded me. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you, and most importantly: don't get discouraged and don't let yourself be talked down. It's really tough at the moment, and the place you live greatly affects quality of life, but often after a while, you get lucky or find that you can also be happy with a different path. I'm wishing you the best of luck!

I don't know how it works in the city. In our village, it only works through word of mouth. Either it is sold immediately, after the funeral at a reasonable price, or the heirs think they are sitting on a gold mine/oil well. The properties go on the usual portals and sometimes stay there for over a year. Eventually, newcomers arrive who buy it. Sometimes from the district town, but increasingly from the Frankfurt metropolitan area, often connected with looking for work here.

If you don't want to live in the countryside, you don't have to. I no longer want to live in the city and my daughter should enjoy her independence in the village.
If it's not enough for a single-family house in the desired city, only an apartment or terraced house, etc. remains.
You have to find some compromise.

Bauland-SH, a 100% subsidiary of the VR banks, is currently developing three building plots in the relatively close vicinity of Hamburg. Two in Bad Segeberg, and one in Sievershütten near Kaltenkirchen. One is conveniently located near the A7, the others near [20] and [21]. This is reliable. We also bought from them in 2017. They do not pressure you to finance with the VR bank, but are happy to mediate an offer. K.

The Landgesellschaft SH, a state enterprise, still has 1600 sqm of building land at 95,- per sqm in Stolpe between Kiel and Hamburg. The plot can be divided.