Well....a fairly old (at least 70 years old) apartment building that existed on Ludwigstrasse 71 in Leipzig.
Location? On the east end of town.....the street goes east-west. It's about 700 meters east of the main train station.
Locals say that no one had lived in the place for twenty-odd years. At some point, if you follow via social media (like Twitter)....at some point in the past five to ten years....non-conformist non-capitalists had made an effort to just take it over.
How the owner fitted into this? Unknown. Some efforts had been made between the squatters and the owner....but never went anywhere.
Purchased for holding and future speculation? Well....you could look at the exterior of the apartment building via Google, and I'd suggest that to put it into 'order'.....to rent out....you'd have to spend a minimum of half-a-million Euro.
My humble guess is that it came up on the market in the past twenty years, in a downward market period, and this guy probably picked it up for less than quarter-million Euro, and he thinks as the street improves and prices go up.....he'll double or triple his money down the path taken. The squatters see it as a building in serious need of repair, and not worth the money that he wants for his speculation efforts.
Water cannons used in the police action? According to the press....yes. This was not a 'friendly' event by either side.
Odds of the squatters moving back in? At this point, based on social media....I'd say it's pretty good odds.
This is part of the whole discussion going on in major cities throughout Germany.....old properties that were allowed to fall into lousy condition....owners unwilling to put more money into renovation.....renters unable to pay much more than what they pay now.....growing potential for speculation of property twenty to thirty years down the line.
You see this situation in a lot of major German cities today.
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