Purchase or construction in Berlin / surrounding areas, realistic?

Hold on, I might have phrased that wrong: I have the option to work from home, unfortunately that is naturally not possible for him. That means we would have to stay roughly in the area around Werneuchen/Strausberg/Rüderdorf.

We have family in the EE district, Spreewald, etc., but that would be too far for daily commuting.

With renovation backlog, of course the question is what exactly needs to be done. If the building fabric is still in good condition, quite a bit could certainly still be done. (we're not that old yet)

The tone here is quite sobering, basically the consensus is: definitely no building, maybe buying, but only very far out or no house at all?

If you decide to move "further" away, a lot of single-family houses and apartments are currently being built in Beelitz-Heilstätten. The big advantage is that within 40 minutes (the train is about a 5-minute walk away) you can be at Berlin Central Station or Alexanderplatz. Starting in the new year, trains will also run every 30 minutes. You should be able to find something for €500,000.

Just google Beelitz-Heilstätten Quartier.

Bestensee approx. 900m2 building land of interest?

Welcome!

The tone here is pretty sobering, basically the sentiment goes like this: Definitely no building, maybe buying, but only far out or no house at all?

There is something like a timeline. At the moment, you will need a lot of luck to find a habitable property that fits your budget. Over time, incomes and opportunities develop and you are pleasantly young.

My boyfriend is definitely very poorly paid, but he also doesn’t do the "fancy programming," i.e. no web stuff.

As a software developer in Berlin, you really have great opportunities. Of course, this is a very broad field and there are incredibly many different skill sets that are more or less in demand – in general, your boyfriend should almost be able to choose who he works for. If the skill set doesn’t match the good jobs, further training helps. In modern sprint-oriented software development departments or companies, a combination of home office and presence is excellently possible. That makes you more independent. With some luck and networking (which is of course a matter of personality), your boyfriend’s income can look very different in a short time and then you can plan differently after a certain stabilization phase. For me (back then employed in sales), 2001 was such a year in which my income quadrupled with three job changes (two of them due to insolvencies).

How old are you? 28 Are children planned? no What income do you have (gross/net)? He: 1800 / She: 2300 (net, rounded per month)

I think the easiest way is to increase income, meaning changing jobs. Soon. What speaks against you, as a DINKS couple, putting a bit more focus on your jobs? So in two years or so, looking for a new job with well over 1000€ more net, then completely different opportunities arise. Meanwhile, the equity capital also grows a bit more. At your age, I wouldn’t lightly dismiss the question of future children with a simple no. But with more salary, even that is possible including a house. I definitely find the existing equity capital very positive, despite the modest salaries.

Also in about two years or so with well over €1000 more net

As a software developer in Berlin, by the end of my twenties I would aim for €5000 net per month in 2 years and systematically look at which skills I need to learn for that. Then there is still plenty of room for growth.

Should be easily possible based on my experience. Although I am not from IT/software development, I know many samples from much more competitive fields (Marketing/Market Research) and even there more than your current situation would be feasible...