Property and Real Estate in Berlin

In the heady days following the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Berlin property market underwent a euphoric boom - followed by a sobering drag through the doldrums, as the market realized gthat the unification of the structurally weak East and West Berlin economies - combined with the attractiveness of the now-accessible areas of surrounding Brandenburg (especially for West Berlin families) - did not make for particularly lucrative pickings.

Over the last few years though, things have been picking up, and 2006 was a boom year for the Berlin real estate market. 2007 looks like it's on course to become a record year too: property prices are still low, both in comparison to other major European cities and also all other German cities.

The Berlin Property Market in 2006

The signs of activity are unmissable: although accounting for around 6% of Germany's population, in 2006 around 12 percent of turnover on the German property market took place in Berlin. Looking just at the residential property sector, that proportion rises to as much as 50 percent of total market turnover throughout the 14 largest German cities. In 2006, turnover from the sale of rental properties and apartment buildings exceeded 7 billion Euros, compared to just 3.9 billion Euros in 2005. Revenue in the commercial sector - which is still suffering from a glut in office space - rose from 1.8 billion in 2005 to 2.7 billion Euros in 2006.

Much of this activity is due to foreign investors: around 70 percent of investment is originating from outside of Germany, with buyers coming from Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Austria and the United States. Investors range from private individuals to companies and real estate trusts (REITS).