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Germany Property Tax (Grundsteuer) Reform 2025: Complete Guide

Property tax notices under Germany's reform are now officially in effect, and what you actually owe can differ dramatically depending on whether your state uses the Federal Model, Bavaria's Area Model, or Baden-Württemberg's Land Value Model. Here's the exact math, the real state-by-state differences, where to check your own Bodenrichtwert, and how to challenge a notice that looks wrong.

Basaveswara RaoPublished September 11, 202611 min read

An illustration of a residential apartment building, representing Germany's Grundsteuer property tax reform

Quick answer

The short version: Germany's Grundsteuer reform replaced property values frozen since 1935/1964 with new ones based on conditions as of 1 January 2022, effective since 1 January 2025. Every bill still follows the same chain: assessment value × Steuermesszahl = Grundsteuermessbetrag, then × your municipality's own Hebesatz = what you owe. Which model sets that first value depends entirely on your state: most use the federal Bundesmodell, but Bayern, Baden-Württemberg, Hamburg, Niedersachsen and Hessen each calculate it differently. If your notice looks wrong, you generally have one month from delivery to object; use our Grundsteuer calculator first to check what you should actually owe.

Disclaimer: This guide explains how Germany's 2025 Grundsteuer reform works and how to check your own notice. It isn't tax or legal advice for your specific property. Always verify anything consequential against your own notice and, where the stakes are high, a Steuerberater.

Fact-checked: Every rule, deadline and figure in this guide was checked directly against official sources (see “Official resources” below). Last checked September 2026; a Hebesatz can change every year, so confirm your municipality's current rate before relying on any example here.

On this page
Why Germany overhauled the Grundsteuer
How the tax is actually calculated
The Federal Model, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and the rest
Finding your Bodenrichtwert on BORIS
A worked example: the same house, three models
Landlord or tenant: who actually pays?
Checking your notice for errors
How to challenge your Grundsteuer notice
If you believe the assessed value itself is too high
A checklist for property owners and expats
Official resources
  1. Read Your Notice
  2. Verify the Model & Value
  3. Check the Maths
  4. Object If It's Wrong

Why Germany overhauled the Grundsteuer

For decades, German property tax was calculated from “unit values” (Einheitswerte) frozen at 1 January 1964 in the former West Germany and 1 January 1935 in the former East: numbers that had nothing left to do with what a property was actually worth six or eight decades later. On 10 April 2018, the Bundesverfassungsgericht ruled this system unconstitutional, since it let two genuinely comparable properties end up taxed completely differently purely depending on when they were last revalued, a violation of the constitutional principle of equal treatment. The court gave the legislature until 31 December 2019 to pass new rules, with the outdated ones staying in force for a transition period.

What actually changed

Every property in Germany was revalued as of a new main assessment date, 1 January 2022, using one of six model paths depending on the state. The resulting Grundsteuerwert (or its state-specific equivalent) has applied since 1 January 2025, and the notices calculated from it are the ones landing on doormats now.

How the tax is actually calculated

The overall calculation follows a similar three-stage structure nationwide, but both the assessment basis and the Steuermesszahl rules can differ by state - the final municipal Hebesatz is then applied on top.

  1. Step 1

    An assessment value

    The Finanzamt sets a starting value for your property: the Grundsteuerwert in the Bundesmodell, or an equivalent area- or location-based figure in the five states running their own model.

  2. Step 2

    × Steuermesszahl = Grundsteuermessbetrag

    A small statutory percentage (around 0.31‰ for most residential property under the Bundesmodell, though several states set their own figure) converts that value into the Grundsteuermessbetrag, still fixed by the Finanzamt.

  3. Step 3

    × Hebesatz = your annual Grundsteuer

    Your city or municipality multiplies that Messbetrag by its own Hebesatz: a rate it sets itself, and the only one of the three steps controlled locally rather than by the state or federal government.

The Federal Model, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and the rest

Most states use the Bundesmodell: a residential Ertragswertverfahren built from your plot size, Bodenrichtwert, living space and year of construction. Five states legislated an entirely different model instead, and even among Bundesmodell states, several set their own Steuermesszahl, so identical starting facts can produce a materially different bill purely depending on which side of a state border a property sits.

Six model paths by state
What decides the valueExample city (2025 Hebesatz)
Bundesmodell (most states)Plot size × Bodenrichtwert, building type, floor area and age (an income-value approach)Berlin (470%), Köln (475%)
Bayern (Flächenmodell)Plot and floor area only, multiplied by a fixed rate per m²: the property's actual land value plays no role at allMünchen (824%)
Baden-Württemberg (Bodenwertmodell)Plot size × Bodenrichtwert only: floor area, building age and condition play no roleStuttgart (160%)
Hamburg (Wohnlagenmodell)Plot and floor area, adjusted by a fixed discount tied to an official residential-location ratingHamburg (975%)
Niedersachsen & Hessen (own area-location models)Plot and floor area, adjusted by a location factor comparing your plot's Bodenrichtwert to the municipal averageFrankfurt am Main (854.69%, Hessen)

Not directly comparable

A low headline Hebesatz in one model and a high one in another don't tell you much on their own: Stuttgart's 160% looks dramatically lower than München's 824%, but Baden-Württemberg's own model tends to produce higher underlying values for land-value-heavy properties, so the two aren't directly comparable without actually running the numbers for a specific property.

Which model does each of the 16 states use?

For reference, here's every state's own path in full, including the four Bundesmodell states that legislated their own Steuermesszahl rather than using the federal default:

All 16 states
Model
Baden-WürttembergBodenwertmodell (own)
BayernFlächenmodell (own)
BerlinBundesmodell, own Steuermesszahl for non-residential/undeveloped (0.45‰)
BrandenburgBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
BremenBundesmodell, own Steuermesszahl for non-residential/undeveloped (0.75‰)
HamburgWohnlagenmodell (own)
HessenFlächen-Faktor-Verfahren (own)
Mecklenburg-VorpommernBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
NiedersachsenFlächen-Lage-Modell (own)
Nordrhein-WestfalenBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
Rheinland-PfalzBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
SaarlandBundesmodell, own Steuermesszahl (0.34‰ residential, 0.64‰ other)
SachsenBundesmodell, own Steuermesszahl (0.36‰ residential, 0.72‰ non-residential)
Sachsen-AnhaltBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
Schleswig-HolsteinBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen
ThüringenBundesmodell, federal Steuermesszahlen (its own take effect from 2027)

Coming in 2027

Thüringen currently uses the unmodified federal Bundesmodell Steuermesszahlen, but has legislated its own figures taking effect from 1 January 2027: 0.23‰ for residential property (down from 0.31‰) and 0.59‰ for non-residential property (up from 0.34‰). No action is needed from owners; the Finanzämter reissue the affected Grundsteuermessbescheide automatically.

Finding your Bodenrichtwert on BORIS

The Bodenrichtwert (the official standard land value per square metre for an area) matters most under the Bundesmodell, Baden-Württemberg's own model, and the area-location models used in Hessen and Niedersachsen. Bayern's pure area model and Hamburg's Wohnlagenmodell don't use the Bodenrichtwert at all. Bavaria relies on area-based statutory figures alone, while Hamburg combines area with its own Wohnlage (residential-location) classification instead. Where the Bodenrichtwert does apply, every state's own Gutachterausschuss (valuation committee) publishes these figures, and the joint portal BORIS-D (bodenrichtwerte-boris.de) links out to each state's own system, so you can look up the exact figure for your address for free, without first needing to know which state's own portal to use.

A word of caution

Bodenrichtwerte are zone averages, not appraisals of your specific plot: two neighbouring streets can sit in different zones with meaningfully different values, so it's worth checking the zone boundary on the map itself, not just the headline number.

A worked example: the same house, three models

To see how differently the models actually land, take a 120 m² house on a 500 m² plot and run it through three states' own formulas. These aren't directly comparable calculations: each model starts from a fundamentally different kind of number, and the Baden-Württemberg figure below assumes an illustrative Bodenrichtwert rather than a real address. Even so, they show how differently the same-sized property gets taxed once you actually work through each state's own maths.

Same house, three states (illustrative figures)
How the value is builtResult
Berlin (Bundesmodell)An assumed Grundsteuerwert of 300,200 € × 0.31‰ Steuermesszahl = 93.06 € Messbetrag× 470% Hebesatz ≈ 437 €/year
München (Bayern Flächenmodell)500 m² plot × 0.04 €/m² (=20 €) + 120 m² × 0.50 €/m² × 70% residential Messzahl (=42 €) = 62 € Messbetrag× 824% Hebesatz ≈ 511 €/year
Stuttgart (Baden-Württemberg, illustrative)An assumed Bodenrichtwert of 400 €/m² × 500 m² = 200,000 € × 0.91‰ reduced residential Messzahl = 182 € Messbetrag× 160% Hebesatz = 291.20 €/year

Worth noticing

Notice that Bayern's calculation needed no market-value input at all: only the plot and floor area, both fixed by law at 0.04 € and 0.50 € per square metre. That's the whole point of a pure area model: it's deliberately blind to location and land value, for better or worse.

Landlord or tenant: who actually pays?

Nothing about who ultimately pays changed with the reform. Grundsteuer has long been, and remains, a recoverable operating cost (Betriebskosten) under §2 Nr. 1 of the Betriebskostenverordnung, so a landlord with a valid operating-cost clause in the lease can pass the full amount through to tenants, including any increase the new valuation produces, without needing separate tenant consent. Tenant associations pushed to have Grundsteuer removed from the recoverable list during the reform's drafting; that change was not enacted.

For landlords

The pass-through only works if the lease actually contains an effective operating-cost clause, either naming Grundsteuer directly or referencing the BetrKV: a purely verbal agreement isn't enough, so it's worth checking older leases specifically.

Checking your notice for errors

Before deciding whether to object, check the notice against your own paperwork. The reform's mass, largely automated valuation of every property in the country makes clerical mistakes genuinely common, and every item below feeds directly into the formula above:

  • Wohnfläche (living/floor area): a mismatch here shifts the value in the Bundesmodell and every area-based model alike.
  • Baujahr (year of construction): the Bundesmodell's income-value approach depends on the building's age band.
  • Grundstücksfläche (plot size): taken from the land registry, but transcription errors happen.
  • The Bodenrichtwert actually applied, where your state's model uses one at all: compare it against the value published for your zone at the relevant assessment date (1 January 2022 for the initial reform assessment) via BORIS-D, not today's latest figure.
  • Property type (Grundstücksart): a mixed-use or multi-unit building taxed as a single-family home, or the reverse, changes which Messzahl applies.

Where to look

Every one of these appears on the Grundsteuerwertbescheid itself (or its state-specific equivalent), alongside the figures used to calculate it, not just the final number.

How to challenge your Grundsteuer notice

Property owners typically receive three separate notices, and this is the single most important thing to understand before objecting to anything: each one carries its own independent one-month appeal deadline and becomes final on its own if you miss it. Successfully objecting to a later notice doesn't reopen an earlier one you let lapse.

  1. Notice 1

    Grundsteuerwertbescheid

    From the Finanzamt, this sets the assessed value: the one to challenge if you think the Bodenrichtwert, floor area or age used is wrong.

  2. Notice 2

    Grundsteuermessbescheid

    Also from the Finanzamt, this applies the Steuermesszahl. Rarely wrong on its own if the value above was correct, but it still needs its own timely Einspruch if you're disputing anything about the rate applied.

  3. Notice 3

    Grundsteuerbescheid

    From your municipality, this simply multiplies by the Hebesatz. Objecting here only makes sense if that multiplication itself is wrong, since the underlying value and rate were already fixed by the first two notices.

Check the exact remedy

Don't assume every notice uses the same procedure: the two Finanzamt notices take an Einspruch, but a municipal Grundsteuerbescheid can follow a different route: Munich's, for instance, is a Widerspruch. Always follow the Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung printed on the specific notice, which states the correct remedy, deadline and authority for that notice.

The deadline

You generally have one month from when a notice is deemed delivered (a few days after its printed date) to file a written or electronic Einspruch with the issuing authority: free of charge, no lawyer required, and it's enough at first to state that you object and roughly why.

If the Finanzamt rejects your Einspruch, the next step is a Klage at the competent Finanzgericht (fiscal court); by that point, involving a Steuerberater or Fachanwalt für Steuerrecht is worth considering given the procedural stakes.

If you believe the assessed value itself is too high

Since the Jahressteuergesetz 2024, §220 Abs. 2 BewG expressly lets taxpayers prove a lower gemeiner Wert (fair market value) where the statutory Grundsteuerwert exceeds it by 40% or more, a right that grew out of the Bundesfinanzhof's own May 2024 decisions suspending enforcement on the same basis, now written directly into the valuation statute itself. The proof is typically a professional appraisal, though the statute also explicitly allows a genuine purchase price agreed within one year before or after the relevant assessment date, provided nothing material about the property changed in between.

Not a shortcut

The burden of proof sits with you, not the tax office, and a rough estimate isn't enough: this route is worth pursuing only where the gap is genuinely large, not for an ordinary disagreement over a few thousand euros of value.

A recent update

On 12 November 2025, the Bundesfinanzhof separately ruled in three cases that the Bundesmodell's own valuation rules for residential property (§§252–257 BewG) are constitutionally sound, both in how the 2019 reform law was passed and in how it values property, though challenges to some individual states' own models were still working through the courts as of late 2026.

A checklist for property owners and expats

When your notice arrives

  • Confirm which of the six models applies to your state, and which figures the notice actually used.
  • Cross-check the Bodenrichtwert on BORIS-D yourself, for your exact zone.
  • Verify Wohnfläche, Baujahr, plot size and property type against your own purchase contract or Energieausweis.
  • Note the date each of the three notices arrives: each one starts its own one-month clock.

If something looks wrong

  • Use the legal remedy stated in the notice's own Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung, typically an Einspruch for a Finanzamt notice, though a municipal Grundsteuerbescheid can require a Widerspruch instead, within the stated deadline.
  • Keep it simple at first: state that you object and briefly why; detailed evidence can follow.
  • If the gap between the assessed and real value looks large, start gathering appraisal-grade evidence early, since a formal Gutachten takes time to commission.
  • As a landlord, check your lease's operating-cost clause before assuming a higher amount is automatically passable to tenants.

Official resources

Every figure and rule above is checkable directly against these primary sources:

Getting this right is worth the hour it takes

The reform touches every property owner in Germany at once, but it doesn't touch every property the same way: which model applies, how the Bodenrichtwert was set, and whether your own notice's numbers actually match your property are all things worth checking once, carefully, rather than assuming the automated valuation got it right. None of this is legal advice for your specific situation. When the numbers are close or the stakes are high, a Steuerberater who handles Grundsteuer objections routinely is worth the consultation fee.

Frequently asked questions

Why did my Grundsteuer change so much even though nothing about my property changed?
Because the reform replaced 1935/1964-era values with new ones based on conditions as of 1 January 2022: almost every property's assessed value moved, often by a lot, purely because the old baseline was decades out of date, not because anything about your property itself changed. Whether your actual bill went up or down further depends on what your municipality did with its own Hebesatz.
Is the Hebesatz the same everywhere?
No: it's set by each individual municipality, not by the state or federal government, and varies enormously: Stuttgart's 2025 rate is 160%, Hamburg's is 975%. A municipality can also change its rate from one year to the next when it sets its budget, entirely independent of the reform.
Do I need to do anything myself, or does the Finanzamt handle it all?
For the initial 2022 revaluation, property owners generally had to submit their own Grundsteuer declaration (Erklärung zur Feststellung des Grundsteuerwerts) via ELSTER; the Finanzamt didn't compute the new value from existing records alone, and anyone who never filed stayed obligated to do so even after the Finanzamt issued an estimated assessment. Today, in an ordinary year, you mainly need to act if your notice contains an error, your property's circumstances have genuinely changed, or the Finanzamt itself requests further information.
What if I missed the one-month deadline?
The notice becomes bestandskräftig (legally final) and generally can't be reopened through an ordinary Einspruch any more, even if you later spot a genuine error. A narrow exception exists for certain factual corrections under the tax code, but it's not a reliable substitute for objecting on time.
Does filing an Einspruch cost anything?
No: an Einspruch is free and doesn't require a lawyer or tax advisor, though a court challenge (Klage) after a rejected Einspruch does carry court costs, which is where professional help becomes worth considering.
Can my Grundsteuer actually go down from this reform?
Yes, and for plenty of properties it has: the reform reweighted the tax base entirely, so a property that was over-taxed under the old 1935/1964 values relative to similar properties can end up paying less under the new system, even before accounting for any Hebesatz change.
Does any of this apply the same way to commercial property?
Only partly: commercial and mixed-use properties generally take the Sachwertverfahren or an equivalent non-residential path in each model, with different Steuermesszahlen (0.34‰ rather than 0.31‰ in the Bundesmodell, for example) and none of the residential discounts. The core three-step chain and objection process stay the same.
What about farmland (Grundsteuer A)?
Agricultural and forestry land is valued under its own separate rules (Grundsteuer A) and wasn't the focus of most reform coverage aimed at homeowners, though it went through its own version of the same revaluation and follows the same objection process.

Written and maintained by Basaveswara Rao. Last reviewed on September 12, 2026.

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This article is for general informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute formal tax, legal, or insurance advice (Steuer-, Rechts- oder Versicherungsberatung).