It all started with a flippant remark. Freital's mayor Klaus Mättig told a local tabloid that he could imagine paying young women a subsidy of 2,000 euros ($2,775) if they were willing to sign a lease with a local landlord for a three-year period.

Unfortunately for Mättig, the details of the remark quickly fell to the wayside. What was left was the news: Ladies, come to Freital and get 2,000 euros!

The mayor has already received over 50 letters, mostly from women originally from the eastern German states who had unsuccessfully tried their luck in the west. Mättig has replied to each with the bitter truth: the premium hasn't been decided yet. Nonetheless, he enclosed a list of potential employers in the region.

Freital isn't just for singles

While many parts of eastern Germany are reporting a dramatic female flight, Freital's situation isn't quite so bad.

"It's not as if there are no women here at all on the streets, or that there are only singles walking around," Mättig told the online edition of Der Spiegel magazine.

But Freital's 39,100 residents are anything but happy about the publicity. After all, they've stayed -- despite the lack of vocational training and despite the unemployment. What does Mättig have to offer them?

Mättig himself is happy that his small town has been in the limelight -- even though it was due to a misunderstanding. Yet he is apologetic for the entire situation.

"I just want to set a signal for Freital's desirability," he said in a press release.

The only detail that has been omitted: are there also desirable men for those potential new residents?