Berlin Properties Charlottenburg 2023

Charlottenburg: Back on stage

Anyone exploring Charlottenburg today, in 2023, will be amazed. There is hardly a street without digging pits, cranes, demolitions and new construction. It was not always that way. Only a few years ago, outdated functional buildings from the 50s, 60s and 70s formed the streetscape of some of the most prestigious locations. The post-war architectural era is now disappearing more and more and making way for modern urban architecture that does not have to fear international competition. The transformation of City West is taking place at breathtaking speed. What began with the Neues Kranzler-Eck in 2010 continued spectacularly at Breitscheidplatz with the Upper West and has triggered a chain reaction. Along Lietzenburger Strasse, demolition is making room for something new. On Uhlandstrasse, the 1970s Kudamm-Karree is being propelled into the new millennium, and along Tauentzienstrasse and Kurfürstendamm one big construction site borders the next. But there is also the old, classic Charlottenburg, where Wilhelminian noblesse mingles with Art Deco and Art Nouveau. Many Charlottenburg neighbourhoods are known for their mix of old and new Berliners, e.g. Savignyplatz, Klausenerplatz, Pariser Straße and Mierendorffplatz. Those who still know Erich Kästner's stories feel reminded. 

Property prices in Charlottenburg

In the previous 12 months, about 2,830 Charlotternburg Properties were listed. For residential sales in Charlottenburg, the median asking price we calculated is currently about 6,150 EUR/m². The asking prices for homes have increased by about 2.40 % compared to the same period last year. For floor apartments, the median is around 6,160 EUR/m². Attics are offered for around 12,510 EUR/m² and penthouse units for around 9,590 EUR/m².

In the new construction segment, the median list price for apartments in Charlottenburg based on the last 12 months is currently around 10,010 EUR/m². In this period, from a large number of projects, about 290 objects were put on the market.

Development of property price segments in Berlin Charlottenburg

For years, the listings of apartments for sale in Berlin Charlottenburg had been declining. In 2023, this trend has slightly reversed overall, turning positive. In the past 12 months, a total of approximately 2,830 existing apartments were offered on major real estate platforms. The marketing times have slightly increased recently.

Bird's eye view: Property Prices in Berlin Charlottenburg

The Bubble Chart shows the supply situation of the last 12 months for the property market in Charlottenburg. Broken down by type of apartment, the majority of the properties are priced in the upper price categories. Properties under 4,000 EUR/m² can still be found in the 1950 - 1978 construction year class.

Family houses in Charlottenburg

In addition to the inner-city housing market, Charlottenburg-Nord and Westend also have large numbers of family houses. The market for these Berlin properties is mainly formed by pre-war and post-war housing developments. This very popular building typology is about to catch up with the inner-city housing market in terms of price. Family houses are quantitatively less strongly represented, but their prices are mostly higher than those of flats. In Charlottenburg 170 houses were offered at an average offer price of 6,840 EUR/m² in the 12-month period.

Trend

Charlottenburg is a large and heterogeneous district. Kurfürstendamm and the neighbouring quarters represent the second most important retail centre in Berlin. Purchase prices and rents are approaching the price level of the top locations in Berlin-Mitte. Dynamics and the investment climate are very good. Value increases in recent years have been substantial in all locations and neighbourhoods in Charlottenburg without exception. Charlottenburg's strength lies less in influxes than in Mitte and Kreuzberg, and more in its immanent representative function. At the same time, different location typologies open up a wide range of options for investment, from compact budget flats in post-war residential complexes to high-quality Wilhelminian-style properties and new-build projects of top international standard. 

Apartment buildings in Charlottenburg

The market for rental houses in Charlottenburg shows significant differentiation based on location and construction year categories. The high median price of €3,165 per square meter in 2022, with a price range of €1,707 to €6,579 per square meter, has suffered in 2023 but is based on only a few transactions. Prime locations still achieve top values for multi-family houses from the founding period. Depending on the condition, our buyers continue to pay very high factors and square meter prices in these areas. In simpler locations and conditions, the property's condition takes precedence. For accurate information on the market value of your multi-family house, confidently reach out to your real estate agents in Berlin: Guthmann Estate.

Neighbourhoods in Berlin Charlottenburg

The perception of Charlottenburg was for a long time ambivalent. The district was reduced to its function as a shopping destination for West-Berlin and was not particularly trendy. Hard to imagine, many apartments and offices in the side streets of the Kurfürstendamm and Kantstrasse stood empty and were neither easy to let nor to sell. Young Berliners and those who wanted to become Berliners were more tempted to move to Kreuzberg or Schöneberg. Even with reunification the picture did not change immediately. East Berlin seemed to be more exciting for living, working and investing. In 2009/2010, the real estate market in Charlottenburg began to pick up speed and the City West returned to international focus. Since then, it's been going on in quick succession. Large investors realize large-scale projects, re-internationalize and transform the City West. Charlottenburg is back, stronger than ever, more modern and more attractive. Apart from a few exceptions, the pressure on the housing market is very high in all locations. The housing deficit is spreading across all quarters. Thousands of apartments in Charlottenburg are missing to reach the theoretical average household size as extrapolated by the Office of Statistics. Only new construction can reduce the pressure in Charlottenburg over the long term. 

New construction Charlottenburg

In Charlottenburg, real estate projects are also statements. Ambitious undertakings stretch from Westend to the Zoological Garden and Bahnhof Zoo.

In the Uhlandstraße, a leitmotif project is currently entering the final phase. Since June 2017, Cells Bauwelt has been acting on a grand scale in the Fürst Kudamm-Karree. With an investment of around 500 million euros, Cells has catapulted the formerly dreary Karree with 47,000 m² of office space, 97,000 m² of retail space, and over 275 apartments into the present.

Still in the dialog phase is a vision of SIGNA for the property of the existing Kaufhaus Karstadt Sport, between the Kurfürstendamm, the Augsburger Straße, and the Rankestraße. The basic idea envisages up to three high-rise buildings on this site, which is currently viewed with some skepticism by the Berlin Building Commission. If the project is realized, the estimated construction costs would exceed 300 million euros.

A unique revitalization is taking place in the Kantstraße, where the building “Kant-Garagen,” which is under monument protection, is being rediscovered. The entrepreneur and owner Dirk Gädeke has been transforming the former garage since 2017 into a office, event, and gallery building.

Approximately 1.5 kilometers away lies a parcel of land between the Zoological Garden, the Technical University of Berlin, and the Bahnhof Zoo. The area became famous through the buried project of a giant Ferris wheel at this location. The initiators are the investment group that also planned the giant Ferris wheel. Now the Reiß & Co. Real Estate is thinking with the Technical University of Berlin about a urban campus that would target the tech industry.

Not every project is in the triple-digit million range. In the period 2021/2022, we have identified around 30 other construction projects, ranging from 7 to around 35 residential units. And the most unusual real estate project, with a ground area of 1,470 m², is being built in the middle of nature. The residents of the new rhinoceros house in the Zoological Garden will be moving in this year.

Rental market in Berlin Charlottenburg

On the market for new lettings in the past 12 months according to our evaluations about 1,340 apartments were offered for rent.  New contract rents currently average approx. 14.35 EUR/m². This corresponds to a price change of about 1.20 %. Within the last 5 years the cold rents in Charlottenburg developed by about 10.60 %. The Berlin average currently demands cold rents for apartments of around 13.10 EUR/m². This corresponds to a price increase of approx. 19.20 % over all apartments offered in Berlin in the past 5 years.

Bird's eye view: Asking rents in Berlin Charlottenburg

The Bubble Chart shows the supply situation of the last 12 months for the property market in Charlottenburg. The colors indicate the year of construction classes, the size of the bubbles the quantity of offers, the location in the coordinate system the price radius (square meters) and apartment sizes.

Development of rental price segments in Berlin Charlottenburg

The chart shows the changes in the price structure of the district based on four price segments. A clear shift can be seen in the rental price segments. In the 12-month period about 1,340 stock apartments were offered on the market for re-rentals. We record the largest number of offers in the medium price segment of 8 - 11 EUR/m². In recent years, we have registered a significant increase in the higher price segments. 

Building activity in Charlottenburg

In relation to other districts, Charlottenburg finds itself in the upper mid-range regarding the housing stock. With 104.000 units distributed among 31 statistical planning areas LOR (Lebensweltlich orientierte Räume), the statistical household size is 1.64 persons. The calculated household size is 1.93 persons per household. With an average apartment size of 78.7 m², most quarters are in the upper range.

The building activity in Charlottenburg has remained constant in the past years. When and in which quarters (LOR) construction completions were reported, can be seen from the map. (Source: Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg)

Milieu protection Charlottenburg

In 2018, 2020 and 2021, the district of Charlottenburg has introduced milieu protection areas according to §172 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 2 BauGB (building code). For owners of apartment buildings in Charlottenburg, here are also important developments in the coming years. Preliminary screenings are scheduled for further quarters covering large areas of Charlottenburg. 

Milieu protection map Charlottenburg

Check in our milieu protection map Berlin whether your property is located in a protection area, an investigation area or a suspected area. Our milieu protection map is continuously revised and updated on basis of the resolutions of the district assemblies (BVV). Please also visit our milieu protection area for further information.

Population balance in 2022 at plus 76,000 people

Population growth in Berlin remains a driving force. The war in Ukraine contributed significantly to the net migration of over 76,000 people in 2022. Unlike during the Syrian war in 2015 and 2016, Berlin now has more available space to fall back on. A look at the migration figures for 2022, which will continue in a similar form in 2023, illustrates why real estate in Berlin cannot lose value in perspective. The excess demand remains fundamental. 

Migration in Charlottenburg

The demand pressure on the real estate market in Charlottenburg is mainly based on international influxes. For the increasingly international population the district offers diversity and opportunities. Major employers are located in Charlottenburg and the producing industry in the north of the district offers many jobs. In the more centrally located quarters service providers and retailers prevail.