Wohneigentum für Familien (WEF) – KfW loan 300
The federal loan for families with underage children building their first home. We set out the conditions behind it and how the technical requirements are met in timber construction.
What this programme is about
Wohneigentum für Familien (WEF, home ownership for families) supports households with at least one child under 18 in building or first-purchasing their first own property. Support comes as a reduced-interest KfW loan under programme number 300, applied for through your financing bank — there is no grant element. The interest advantage is substantial, but the conditions are tight: an income ceiling applies, the funded dwelling must be owner-occupied and must be the family's only residential property in Germany. Technically the building has to reach Effizienzhaus level 40 together with a life-cycle assessment, and the higher loan amounts additionally require the state sustainability certificate QNG. For families planning with a timber construction firm this is a realistic combination to achieve. What matters just as much is the sequence: the application always comes before the contract.
Who can apply
Applicants are private individuals with at least one child under 18 registered in the household. Taxable household income must not exceed €90,000 per year with one child; the ceiling rises by €10,000 for each additional child. What counts is not the current year but the average of two past tax years — for applications made in 2026, the years 2023 and 2024. The funded dwelling must be owner-occupied, you must hold at least a 50 percent share of the property, and it must be your family's only residential property in Germany.
What is funded
The programme covers building or first-purchasing an owner-occupied house or apartment; for a first purchase a deadline after completion applies. The loan amount depends on the number of children and the level achieved. At the Klimafreundliches Wohngebäude level it is €170,000 for one or two children, €200,000 for three or four, and €220,000 from five children upwards. At the QNG level the amounts rise to €220,000, €250,000 and €270,000 respectively. Land purchase costs are not eligible, and there is no repayment grant — the benefit is the interest rate.
Requirements at a glance
At least one child under 18 lives in the household, and you hold a share of at least 50 percent in the funded property.
Taxable household income is capped at €90,000 per year with one child; the ceiling rises by €10,000 for every additional child.
The funded dwelling is owner-occupied and is your family's only residential property anywhere in Germany.
The building reaches Effizienzhaus level 40, heat is generated without oil, gas or biomass, and a life-cycle assessment must be produced.
For the higher loan amounts you must additionally document the sustainability certificate QNG-PLUS or QNG-PREMIUM.
An energy efficiency expert from the federal list issues the pre-application confirmation, and the application must precede any contract.
How the process runs
Check eligibility first
Before planning starts, settle two questions: is your taxable income in the relevant tax years below the ceiling, and do you own no other residential property? Only then is the effort of design and verification planning worthwhile.
Fix the design and the funding level
We agree the design with you and decide whether to aim for the QNG level. That decision determines both the loan amount available to you and the certification effort, which has to be planned in from the beginning.
Commission the expert
An energy efficiency expert from the federal list calculates the building, produces the life-cycle assessment and issues the pre-application confirmation (BzA). Without that document your bank will not accept the application.
Apply before signing anything
The loan application goes to KfW through your financing institution — necessarily before the construction or purchase contract is signed. Sign first and apply afterwards, and eligibility is lost for good.
Build, verify, submit proof of use
We build the timber structure to the verified design and document the execution. After completion the expert confirms what was built, and you submit the proof of use to KfW within the required deadline.
Reaching Effizienzhaus 40 in timber
Effizienzhaus 40 combined with a life-cycle assessment plays to the strengths of timber construction. In timber frame and panel systems the insulation sits between the load-bearing studs, so high insulation performance is achieved without excessive wall thickness — a tangible gain on tight plots, because less floor area disappears into the structure. For the life-cycle assessment, timber as a renewable material enters the calculation with low manufacturing-related emissions. If you aim for the QNG level, and therefore the higher loan amounts, you also need documentation that the timber comes from sustainable forestry. Whether your specific design reaches the level is determined by the expert's calculation.
Services we carry out for this
We carry out the construction work. Evidence and applications go through independent experts.
Our role — and the expert's role
We are a timber construction contractor, not an energy consultancy and not a funding advisor. Income ceilings, application formalities and verifications are not decided by the trade business: only an independent energy efficiency expert from the federal list may issue the pre-application and post-completion confirmations, and the loan itself is granted by your financing institution. What we deliver is compliant execution: wall, floor and roof assemblies built to the agreed design, a properly installed airtight layer, and the construction records the expert needs for the verification.
Programme details at KfWFrequently asked questions about funding
What is the income limit for the KfW 300 loan?
Taxable household income must not exceed €90,000 per year with one child, and the ceiling rises by €10,000 for each additional child. The figure used is not gross salary but the taxable income shown on your tax assessments — for applications in 2026, the average of the 2023 and 2024 tax years.
Does the programme also cover buying an existing house?
No, that has its own programme: loan 308, Wohneigentum für Familien – Bestandserwerb, known informally as Jung kauft Alt. It funds the purchase of an existing property combined with an obligation to renovate it to a defined energy standard within a set period. The income ceiling and owner-occupation rules apply there too, with lower loan amounts.
Is Effizienzhaus level 55 enough for the KfW 300 loan?
No. Unlike Klimafreundlicher Neubau, which has a temporary Effizienzhaus 55 level, Wohneigentum für Familien requires Effizienzhaus level 40 throughout — together with a life-cycle assessment and heat generation without oil, gas or biomass. The higher loan amounts additionally require the QNG certificate.
Can KfW 300 be combined with other funding schemes?
Combining it with state or municipal programmes is possible in principle, but cumulation rules differ from scheme to scheme. Clarify this with your financing institution and your energy efficiency expert before you apply — corrections after the fact are as a rule not possible.
Plan the family loan early enough
Talk to us before you sign a construction contract. We check which Effizienzhaus level your design can reach and coordinate the steps with your energy efficiency expert.
Status: July 2026. Funding conditions can change at short notice — the binding reference is always the current KfW programme information.
All information on funding programmes is provided to the best of our knowledge, without guarantee and without any claim to completeness. It does not replace legal, tax or energy consulting. Terms and budgets change constantly; only KfW, BAFA, NBank and the responsible funding bodies are binding. Applications must generally be filed before work begins.