Dresden is shrinking for the first time in years: Who is fleeing the city?

Dresden’s population is declining: Young families in particular are fleeing high rents and juicy land prices.

Dresden – For years it was perfectly clear: Dresden grows and bursts at the seams. But for the first time in a long time, the population has now decreased significantly.

–

Young people in particular are turning their backs on the city. As the largest metropolis in the Free State, Leipzig has long hurried away. Is Dresden full?

The facts: Dresden has actually been growing continuously since 1999. The main reasons for this were more immigration than emigration and significantly more births than deaths. For years Florence on the Elbe was even the birth capital of Germany. A title that Dresden lost to Leipzig in 2016.

In the first quarter of 2020, 259 more people died than were born. Since the balance between new arrivals and departures was also negative (615), the number of residents decreased by 0.15 percent compared to the end of 2019. In terms of numbers, the 18 to 29-year-olds declined the most.

Johannstadt, Gorbitz, Pieschen and Coschütz / Gittersee are shrinking particularly significantly. For years, Dresden has been losing residents, especially in the immediate vicinity.

–

Every month about a hundred more residents leave the state capital to move to the “bacon belt” than come to Dresden in return.

This is due to the sharp rise in rents and land prices, which are driving young families out in particular.

However, the Dresden statistics office urges caution. Because “Corona” paralyzed large parts of the administration from the end of March, the current data may be imprecise.

Geographer Mathias Siedhoff (56), an expert in demography at TU Dresden, is also reluctant. “We cannot currently derive a trend; it can be a temporary change.”

For example, a particularly large number of students could have come to Dresden five years ago. As a result, a larger number of young people can now be expected to leave.

–