#438: Terrorism thwarted, rents slashed, forever chemicals, racism at football match

🌳We're getting one million more trees

Nov 04, 2025

Dear 20 Percent,

Full disclosure: I once rented a flat from Swedish property giant Heimstaden and the entire thing sucked from start to finish. When I moved out, they nitpicked about out painting the walls white to an extreme degree — I had to get the place repainted, resulting in enormous additional costs for me. Not a happy experience.

For others, it’s been far worse. Heimstaden, which owns 29,700 units in Germany and is the second largest private landlord in Berlin, seems to be constantly trying to evict people for one reason or another. In the latest case, the company is trying to evict a woman living in Reinickendorf after renting her a place under a possibly illegal “temporary contract” to avoid the legal rent cap. Activist group Stop Heimstaden is dedicated to shining a light on this single company’s aggressive tactics.

That said, there is now some hope for tenants who have to deal with this corporation.

An rbb24 investigation revealed that legal challenges by tenants forced Heimstaden to lower rents hundreds of times in Berlin. The tenants challenged the company’s claims that their apartment had undergone “comprehensive modernization”, a trick they used to justify rents well above legal limits.

In one spectactular case, a couple that rented a place in Wedding successfully had their “cold rent”reduced from €1,400 to €700. Many other tenants were able to get reductions of hundreds of euros per month.

To legally sidestep the rent cap because of “comprehensive modernization”, the landlord must basically bring the quality of an apartment up to new-build standards in terms of heating and electrical systems, windows, plumbing, flooring and insulation. Heimstaden’s “modernizations” were apparently nowhere close to that standard.

In this extremely tight housing market, one might be reluctant to launch a legal challenge against a landlord — for fear of conflict. But if you feel you’re getting ripped off, it can’t hurt to investigate further, join a renter’s association or contact a lawyer to get informed about your rights as a tenant — they are, in fact, robust in Germany.

More news below.

Maurice

🏆Next Wednesday, I’ll be hosting my first 20% Berlin News Quiz at Electric Social near Alexanderplatz. I’d love to see you there. It’s free but please do register.

❤️ If you enjoy reading 20% Berlin, please do share with a friend! ❤️

Terror attack thwarted?

A 22-year-old Syrian man, Abdallah R., was arrested Saturday on suspicion of planning a suicide attack in the Berlin, Tagesspiegel reports. The tip-off about his alleged plans came from a foreign intelligence service, as German authorities had no prior knowledge of his extremist activities. A police SWAT team found materials for building explosives in his apartment on Sonnenallee in Neukölln. Critics, including police union representatives, have highlighted that German security services are often too dependent on foreign intelligence.

Footballer subjected to racist abuse

Meanwhile, out in Brandenburg: During a third-division match between TSV 1860 Munich and Energie Cottbus, Cottbus player Justin Butler was subjected to racist abuse from a spectator who made “monkey noises” in the 72nd minute. The referee interrupted the game for 10 minutes and had the offender — apparently a Munich fan — removed from the stadium. Butler described the incident as a “real shock” but played on. The German Football Association (DFB) has launched an investigation, and 1860 Munich has apologised to Butler and Cottbus for the incident.

A million trees for Berlin

In a rare case of a citizen’s referendum campaign being adopted by politicians without the proposal even going to a city-wide referendum, the Berlin state parliament has passed a new law aimed at making the city greener and better adapted to climate change. The law, which grew out of a grassroots signature campaign, sets the goal of planting 1 million trees in Berlin by 2040. It mandates the creation of more green spaces, the cooling of 170 “heat quarters” by two degrees through greening and desealing, and the establishment of accessible “cooling islands.”

🍺 🥨 Germany-wide news 🥨 🍺

🏭 Defence industry hit by rare earth supply bottlenecks

👴🏻 Merz wants Syrian refugees to return home

🚨 Should schoolkids prep for “threat scenarios”?

💥 The Nord Stream riddle

Events this week, curated by The Next Day Berlin

🪩 180 min with A Guy Called Gerald (live)
Thursday, 06.11, 7 pm – midnight. Zenner, Alt-Treptow 15, 12435 Berlin. Tickets: €16.95–28.25
A 3-hour live set from acid house pioneer A Guy Called Gerald, blending deep techno and rhythm. Korean artist Cosmo opens the night.

🎭 ONSITE Site-Specific Art Festival 2025
Thu–Sun, 06–09.11. Venues: Tieranatomisches Theater, Acker Stadt Palast, Museum Kesselhaus & Kino Central. Free entry
ONSITE spreads across four venues, turning each into a temporary lab for site-specific art and collective storytelling. Over four days, artists explore transformation, memory, and belonging through performances, installations, and films. We’ve been going since the first edition and always end up discovering something unexpected.

🎨 Raoul Hausmann: Vision. Provocation. Dada.
Opening Fri, 07.11, 7 pm. On view 08.11–16.03.2026. Berlinische Galerie, Alte Jakobstr. 124–128, 10969 Berlin. Tickets: €12 (Opening - free admission)
A major retrospective on Raoul Hausmann, the restless Dada pioneer who blurred art, sound, text, and life in a lifelong experiment against convention.

🍋‍🟩Roda de Feijoada #55 – Autumn Edition
Sunday, 09.11, 12 pm–10 pm. Festsaal Kreuzberg, Am Flutgraben 2, 12435 Berlin. Tickets: €18
A full day of Brazilian food, samba, and community warmth. Expect live roda de samba, DJs, kids’ workshops, caipirinhas, and classic feijoada. Feels a bit like summer sneaking back into November.

Factoid

According to a new tests carried out by environmentalist NGO BUND, Berlin’s drinking water and groundwater contains high levels of Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), aka “forever chemicals”. Berlin was in the mid-range of problematic results, with the worst concentrations found in Zeuthen, Brandenburg (thanks to PFAS in firefighting foam) and parts of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. So, can we still drink the tapwater? I asked a friend who’s an environmental chemist. He said: “There is a large contaminated site in Tegel, and Berliner Wasserbetriebe (the water utility) is removing PFAS from the groundwater there using the latest technology available. Removing it completely would make our drinking water very expensive. The substances are definitely cause for concern. But as long as the health department doesn’t sound the alarm, I remain relaxed about it.”

Electric Social — Bring Back Fun!

Berlin’s tech crowd knows how to innovate, but can you still have fun offline?

At Electric Social, we’re on a mission to Bring Back Fun. Step into a neon-lit world of over 50 arcade games, a full restaurant menu, and craft cocktails that hit restart on your night out.

Whether you’re planning a company Christmas party, a team night, or just looking for something different with friends, we’ve got the perfect mix of nostalgia and nightlife.

Tuesdays offer 50% off all arcade games, Thursdays bring Free Karaoke Night, and Fridays transform into a Retro 90s/2000s Party.

Electric Social isn’t just another night out, it’s your new favorite after-work escape.

Located in Berlin.

Book your next night or Christmas party at electric-social.de