> Also the church runs alot of old folks homes, and thus persuades old people to transfer there land to the church, so in some towns, half the houses are owned by the catholic church
Is the church exempt from property tax in Germany?
If so this sounds like a return to 'mortmain' principle of middle ages which caused a lot of conflict between government and church historically:
England developed quicker than the rest of Europe because the King limited the accumulation of tax exempt real estate by the church. The church was essentially largest absentee corporate land holder in Europe. It left large quantities of land vacant and did not contribute public fees towards infrastructure improvements.
Is the church exempt from property tax in Germany?
If so this sounds like a return to 'mortmain' principle of middle ages which caused a lot of conflict between government and church historically:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortmain
England developed quicker than the rest of Europe because the King limited the accumulation of tax exempt real estate by the church. The church was essentially largest absentee corporate land holder in Europe. It left large quantities of land vacant and did not contribute public fees towards infrastructure improvements.