Why don't construction prices go down?

I consider illegal work as self-defense against the overreaching state.

I am self-employed. I pay my taxes and do so out of conviction. Even if it’s not little. I’m glad that I don’t have to pay anything for my children’s school. I’m glad that the sidewalk is paved, the streets are somewhat maintained, and the application for parental allowance was processed quickly. But this sentence drives me completely up the wall every time. If someone thinks they can play the rebel a little and evade taxes, then that is simply a criminal offense. And even worse: this is not self-defense against the overreaching state, but fraud against society, neighbors, parents, and coworkers (who pay taxes). Schools, streets, public infrastructure, offices—there is crying when these don’t work. But who pays for that? We do. The state is not an entity installed by extraterrestrials. The state is us. The voters, the taxpayers, and their political representatives. You don’t have to agree with current politics. But that doesn’t justify fraud at all. I don’t understand this egoism. That’s what I think when I see such statements. And I think that every time a bill disappears somewhere in the hospitality industry without being registered. It happens thousands of times a day. But it’s still not okay.

I am a master craftsman of a very rare trade. Also due to political decisions and the general economic situation, I am out. In principle, I no longer train apprentices,

And that is exactly becoming a huge problem here. No one will be able to bring back the expertise and quality of the German Mittelstand. We read here daily about botched construction. But for that, we now bring in foreign skilled workers who are supposed to be lured here with massive tax breaks.

Well, what else can you say, having the ability to train but not training, but complaining when the workforce comes from elsewhere ... and, what supposed tax breaks are those?

We have tax class 4/4 even though I earn much less than my wife.

My gross is about 3.5k, hers 7k...

So what?
I'll just get it back the following year.

These are all problems for people who have to calculate closely, or exactly.

But for people like most of you, doesn't it not matter?

Save during that time, so you have something in case of emergency.
With bonuses, etc., we are doing well.

We can pay the 2k installment, make the maximum special repayment every year, and still save some cash.

It will continue, for most without it being too noticeable.

Craftsmen invoices are being checked, rental contracts requested

Be more specific! You submit the invoices anyway when you want to deduct them. So what does checking mean here?
Rental contracts requested: What exactly is that supposed to mean? I attach the current rental contract for the tax office anyway – if I don’t, the last submission remains valid unchanged.

I read the following: You like to dispute the assessments, you are known for that among the caseworkers, and they treat you accordingly. The fault is not yours but the others’, whom you therefore deceive out of self-defense.
If you come across at the office even remotely like you do here in the forum, you just get special treatment and not the standard one.

By the way, I have made a new observation for me since I am forced into quite a lot of committee work: Older people who loudly complain all day about the circumstances but oppose every attempt to change exactly those circumstances. Apparently, people don’t like to spoil their hobby of complaining...

(why do I have to think of that right now? no idea...)

I am self-employed. I pay my taxes and do so out of conviction. Even though it is not little. I am glad that I don't have to pay anything for my children's school. I am glad that the sidewalk is paved, the streets are reasonably maintained, and the application for parental allowance was processed quickly.

I also pay considerable taxes. However, I still have to pay 150 euros school fees plus 100 euros meal money every month. I had to pay for the sidewalk myself as part of the street improvement contribution statute, and the work of the authorities is a disaster. Keyword digitalization. Nothing works at all there.

I don't know what kind of Germany you live in, but for me it doesn't look that rosy. I don't want to send my child to an antisocial and rundown normal school.

Keyword antisocial. If you raise a disabled child today, which is associated with considerable costs, the supposedly so social state only gives you a tax exemption of 80 euros per month, which corresponds to a tax saving of 16 euros per month. That is antisocial.

Why shouldn't the craftsman work under the table? The painter or heating engineer who builds your house goes home with 18 euros gross per hour. That is then 10 euros net or somewhere between 1800 - 2000 euros per month. Most people here laugh about that. Maybe some here have completely forgotten the proportions.

But don't worry, the tide will turn shortly.

I had to pay for the sidewalk myself under the street maintenance contribution ordinance

The whole sidewalk, for everyone? You realize that yourself, right? Otherwise, you just moved the gateposts instead of answering the questions. As always. Regarding the rundown schools from absolutely first-hand sources: good kids achieve the same degrees here. They just have to bring the right equipment from home. The poor location factor (the "rundown") results from the surrounding parents’ homes/substitutes for such.