Berlin Properties Prenzlauer Berg 2023

From trendy neighbourhood to global player

Prenzlauer Berg was the first boom quarter of the German capital and plays a pioneering role. Nowhere in the early 1990s did so many people move in as here. However, it is wrong to talk about population exchange. Rather, it was an ongoing process of change that also affected many other quarters in Berlin after the fall of communism; a natural process because the city was no longer divided. In the context of the post-communist era, change and transformation were a cultural shock for many residents. Socialism turned to free economy, many rental apartments to ownership. In the 1980s Prenzlauer Berg bled out from the population. Most of the buildings and apartments had pre-war standards. Coal stove, outside toilets, no bathrooms. The GDR state was not interested in Prenzlauer Berg and relocated many people into the modern prefabricated housing estates in Marzahn and Hellersdorf. The consequence were thousands of empty flats in Prenzelberg and a massively eroded housing stock at the end of the century. The truth is that the house renovations from this time saved the stock from complete decay. With liveable houses the streetscape and the structure of inhabitants changed. The mixture was colourful: creative people, students, international visitors and many people with an unusually high purchasing power for Prenzlauer Berg. In more than 30 years since then, the street scene has evolved. Today in many quarters chic new and old buildings line the streets. The prices for old buildings came almost up to the new building prices. The proportion of academics in some neighborhoods today is up to 75 percent. 

Property prices in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The property market in Prenzlauer Berg has been experiencing constant growth in value for decades. The number of listings, on the other hand, has been declining for a long time. In 2023, listings are at a higher and stable level for the first time after a long declining period. On a yearly basis, the price development in the inventory segment is -2.40 % and in the new construction segment 3.10 %, based on 130 listings from new build projects and several  loft/penthouse developments. The average asking list price is 6,850 EUR/m² for stock units and 11,460 EUR/m² for new buildings. 

Bird's eye view: Property Prices in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The Bubble Chart shows the supply situation of the last 12 months for the property market in Prenzlauer Berg. 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.

Price segments in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The development of the price segments shows a slight listings increase in 2023. Prices and offers are not yet growing in parallel, but the trend reflects the typical characteristics of a mature market, with high property quality and constant, predominantly hedonic price increases. In short: Prenzlauer Berg continues to develop into one of the most valuable locations in Berlin. 

Trend

The major upheavals in Prenzlauer Berg took place many years ago. When other districts were still in their infancy, Prenzlauer Berg was already undergoing a profound transformation. The district, which for a long time aroused the mistrust of the GDR state and state security due to the East Berlin bohemians, was politically left to decay during the Wall era.

After the fall of the Wall, hundreds of completely dilapidated apartment buildings were extensively renovated and quickly became synonymous with the new Berlin. This was followed by one local real estate boom after another, attracting many young families to live in nice, modernized and spacious apartments. In this young and trendy district, many small and chic neighborhoods soon split off. The investments also shaped the demographics.

Prenzlauer Berg remains a highly safe market with programmed value developments in the coming decades. In 2023, Prenzlauer Berg remains on track despite interest rate jumps and crisis sentiments.

Apartment buildings in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

Since the administrative reform in 2001, the district of Prenzlauer Berg has been part of Pankow. In Prenzlauer Berg, located to the south (relative to Pankow), the distinctive cityscape is a mix of rental houses from the founder's period, interspersed with modern apartment buildings. The number of buildings in Prenzlauer Berg amounts to just over 7,200 units with around 110,000 apartments. Large apartments, top schools and kindergartens, and a comprehensive supply structure make Prenzlauer Berg a family district. On the other hand, 39 percent of households are single-person households. Three-room apartments constitute the largest portion at about 37 percent of the housing stock, followed by four-room apartments. Only just under five percent of the apartments are one-room apartments.

2023: Few transactions and slight losses in Prenzlauer Berg

In 2023, both buyers and owners are holding back when it comes to trading multi-family houses in Berlin. Against the backdrop of high interest rates on financing, the rather large-volume rental houses in Prenzlauer Berg pose a challenge for private buyers. This is reflected in slightly declining prices at the moment. Our research with the Berlin Appraisal Committee has shown that in the first half of 2023, only 7 rental houses were notarized in the Prenzlauer Berg district. According to the Appraisal Committee, the median purchase price per square meter of gross floor area (GFA) is 2,046 EUR. Calculated on the living space, we come to around 3,000 EUR/m² with a conversion factor of 1.3. The maximum value so far is approximately 3,830 EUR/m² of living space.

The properties have core sizes between 1,750 and 2,000 square meters of living space, which is larger than existing properties in other districts. No surprise: The more bourgeois and representative, the higher the market value of multi-family houses in Prenzlauer Berg.

New construction Prenzlauer Berg

Prenzlauer Berg offers many of the most popular residential locations in Berlin. The appeal of one of Germany's largest old Wilhelminian-style districts is particularly strong for a young, international and even class-conscious clientele. Families, on the other hand, appreciate the high density of schools, strong social communities and the vibrant daytime life in the numerous cafes in the neighborhoods. In the evening, when the bistros close their doors, hundreds of smaller and larger pubs and restaurants take over. Around 165,000 people live in an area of about eleven square kilometers, and after several waves of redevelopment and redensification, projects are now being developed on the few remaining vacant building sites that are priced in line with the top league. 

For example, the most expensive new construction project in Prenzlauer Berg in recent years was completed in Pappelallee in February 2021. In addition to a REWE and an underground garage with 70 parking spaces, 240 residential units have been developed and completed here.  

A little further south, 117 residential units were under construction since August 2020 with a total investment of around 450 million euros. In addition to around 7360 m² of residential space, 1830 m² of commercial and retail space is also being developed here. The project will be completed in the 3rd quarter of 2022. 

Berlinovo is also about to hand over a mixed-use project in Walter-Friedländer-Strasse. Here, 235 residential units on six floors have been developed in recent years. This also includes two commercial units and approximately 5000 m² office space. With a gross floor area of 16,000 m², it is one of the largest new construction projects in Prenzlauer Berg in recent years. 

Building land is rare in Prenzlauer Berg, therefore smaller projects are also under development and construction.

In the last 2 years we have counted a total of 30 new construction projects with a construction sum between 3-88 million. Contact us if you are interested in one of the projects.

Neighbourhoods in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

Prenzlauer Berg is not a very large district in terms of area but it borders around with popular neighbours: Pankow, Wedding, Mitte, Friedrichshain and Hohenschönhausen as well as Weissensee. Thanks to its excellent infrastructure, the district is a core area for the surrounding districts. In the northeast there is the park "Volkspark Prenzlauer Berg", built after the Second World War as a hill of wreckage. Besides the little lakes in the Volkspark Prenzlauer Berg and in the Ernst-Thälmann-Park, water areas are otherwise quite rare. Among the most sought-after neighbourhoods there are Kollwitzplatz, Arnimplatz, the quarters around Bornholmer Strasse and Wisbyer Strasse and various micro-locations along Greifswalder Strasse. The demand is high everywhere. The discrepancy between statistical and arithmetical household size shows that the market is in relative equilibrium. Helmholtzplatz and Bötzowviertel are particularly popular places for families. The Bötzow quarter is home to Kurt Schwitters School, one of Berlin's largest schools. The Kastanienallee is also called "Castingallee". Here and in the Gleim quarter, not far away, international life is bustling. On weekends the Mauerpark is a meeting place for people from Prenzlauer Berg and an international crowd. Prenzlauer Berg is practiced calmness with a dash of normality in everyday life.

Rental market in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The rental offer in Prenzlauer Berg in the past 12 months was of about 1,780 apartments. The average (offered) rent for existing apartments in this period was about 18.40 EUR/m². For new apartments one had to pay on average 25.75 EUR/m². The price development for existing apartments was  11.60 %, for new apartments -7.00 %.

Bird's eye view: Asking rents in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The bubble chart shows the supply situation of the past 12 months on the property market in Prenzlauer Berg. The colors mark the year of construction classes, the size of the bubbles the quantity of offers, the location in the coordinate system price radius (square meters) and apartment sizes. Construction activity in the rental housing sector in Prenzlauer Berg is very low. Price-fixed housing is mainly offered in the 1950-1978 construction year class. The widest range can be found in old buildings.

Development of rental price segments in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg

The chart shows the changes in the price structure of the district based on four price segments. How many apartments were offered in the different price segments? The line shows the development of the average offer price per square metre across all apartment types and price segments for existing apartments.

Building activity in Prenzlauer Berg

The suburb Prenzlauer Berg is part of the administrative district Pankow. Its housing stock amounts to 94.000 units distributed over 15 statistical planning areas LOR ( Lebensweltlich orientierte Räume). With an average apartment size of 73,0m², Prenzlauer Berg is in line with the Berlin average. The difference between the statistical household size (1.65 persons per household) and the calculated household size (1.79 persons per household) is comparatively small.

The peak of construction activity in Prenzlauer Berg was recorded in 2015. When and in which quarters (LOR) construction completions were reported, can be seen from the map. (Source: Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg)

Milieu protection

In Prenzlauer Berg there are currently ten conservation areas (milieu protection areas) in accordance with §172 BauGB with a total area of about 535 ha. This corresponds to about 49% of the total area of the Prenzlauer Berg district.

Milieu protection map Prenzlauer Berg

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.

Migration

While Prenzlauer Berg shows a negative balance following the current trend within Berlin, the district gains population from international and national migrations. In suburban terms, there are slight tendencies to drift away. Thus a reversal of the currents has taken place, which until the turn of the millennium were mainly fed from inland trains. The international influxes to Prenzlauer Berg are dominated by the USA and Western European countries. The national influxes are led by North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg, Bavaria, followed by Baden-Württemberg. In suburban relations, the district loses residents to the districts of Oberhavel, Barnim and Potsdam. The balance is also negative in internal relations. Prenzlauer Berg has lost to the other districts of Berlin in the course of 5 years. Friedrichshain, Mitte, Pankow and Wedding are the main targets.