Many apartment seekers have searched the usual platforms without success, including Jenny H. and her small family. Six months ago, she and her partner had a child. There's enough room at the moment, but it's going to be tight in the next few months. "The little one is still sleeping with us in the bedroom, but that won't work in the long run," says the apartment seeker. In six months at the latest, the family will need more space.

The concept of moving into a smaller or larger apartment makes sense, is sustainable and, above all, meets needs, Weinert says. "I think it can relax the market a little bit if families need one more room and a retiree feels good about downsizing," he says optimistically.

Swapping apartments seems easier in theory than it actually is in practice, as Jenny H. has had to experience. She and her partner are prepared to swap apartments all over Bonn, but they have been looking for an apartment for two years. "Those were almost only mass viewings, 20 people and more. If someone earns more there, you have no chance." She feels the market is very tight and crowded, there is simply too little affordable housing. For about a month now, she has put the apartment up for exchange, but so far no one has contacted her about swapping.

Weinert also sees difficulties with the apartment swap concept in the fact that landlords have to agree to the swap. A total of four parties are involved in an exchange: The landlords of both apartments and the tenants who want to swap. "Then the leases and everything organizational has to be discussed," Weinert says. The fact that the concept is not yet so well known is also a problem, especially among the older generation. "We are there to advise, help with advertising, serve and are happy to answer questions," emphasizes the platform's managing director.

One big issue Weinert is concerned about, he says, is the rise in gas and electricity prices. Many tenants would like to move into a smaller apartment to be able to pay the increased costs. "But then, there aren't an infinite number of small apartments, as well as large ones."

Jenny H. knows a Bonn woman who successfully swapped apartments, though she moved to Troisdorf to do so. "You have to be willing to go outside (the area). My neighbor had five children, and only three rooms. They looked for so long and now finally have more space," she reports.

Peter Kox from the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg/Ahr Tenants' Association does not think that Bonn residents are as keen to swap as believed by Weinert, the platform's managing director. Of course there are offers for apartment swaps, but this is not so noticeable in the association. According to Kox, there was an idea from the city to set up a kind of swap platform. However, there was a lack of requests and ads on the part of Bonners. "Matching is the problem," he notes. Now, he says, the city council has taken the municipal housing company Vebowag to task for a new attempt in the form of a swap platform. "After all, Vebowag has a contingent of smaller or barrier-free apartments for senior citizens," he explains. The need for living space is there, he says, and must be met. To swap apartments, there's nothing to consider legally, according to Kox. "Usually the tenant doesn't take over the lease, but a new one is drawn up and adjusted," Kox explains. "That means you ultimately bear exactly the same consequences as if you signed a lease without swapping," he says.