Market Analysis
CBRE housing market report 2015
Housing market report 2015: Asking rents up 5.1%, condominiums up 10.1%
According to the CBRE housing market report, Berlin's rent control law barely slowed rental price increases in 2015. Asking rents rose 5.1% on average. Condominium prices increased 10.1%.
Peter Guthmann
Berlin's rent control law (Mietpreisbremse) has been in effect since June 2015. Its impact on the market so far is minimal. That is the conclusion of the 2015 housing market report presented by CBRE and Berlin Hyp.
5.1% higher rents despite regulation
Asking rents for apartments rose by an average of 5.1 percent in 2015, reaching just under 9.00 euros per square meter. In the previous year, the increase was 6.6 percent, so the slowdown is modest. The rent cap is missing its intended effect on new lease rents. Exemptions for new construction and comprehensively modernized apartments likely contribute to this.
Large differences between boroughs
The increases are spread unevenly across the city. Mitte leads at 7.0 percent, followed by Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Reinickendorf (both 5.9 percent). At the other end: Lichtenberg at just 0.9 percent, Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf at 1.8 percent, and Marzahn-Hellersdorf at 2.4 percent. But rents continued to rise even there.
Population growth meets insufficient new construction
The pressure comes from the demand side. Berlin grew by around 40,000 residents in 2014. In 2015, according to the Senate Administration, an additional 57,500 asylum seekers arrived. The new construction volume is unevenly distributed: Marzahn-Hellersdorf has 220 new apartments in the pipeline, Reinickendorf 270. Treptow-Koepenick has 3,300, Lichtenberg 3,650, and Mitte 4,870. New construction falls far short of covering the demand.
Condominiums: 10.1% more expensive
Condominium prices saw a particularly sharp increase, rising 10.1 percent on average. The report finds that the strongest price gains occurred in the upper market segment and in peripheral locations. In the outer boroughs, housing cost ratios remain moderate, leaving room for future appreciation. The data basis: over 110,000 rental listings and 67,000 condominium listings from the first three quarters of 2014 and 2015. Those looking to follow the latest market development can find our reports here.