AfA (Absetzung für Abnutzung)
Depreciation of the building portion of a rental property.
§7 Abs. 4 EStG
AfA is the German tax term for depreciation. For residential rentals, it lets you deduct 2 %, 2.5 %, or 3 % of the building portion of your purchase price each year. The land (Grund-und-Boden) cannot be depreciated. AfA typically reduces taxable rental profit by 4 000 – 10 000 € per property per year.