The planned merger of Deutsche Annington and Gagfah is not the first of its kind, as it comes in the wake of the GSW/Deutsche Wohnen merger. Moreover, a series of smaller listed housing companies is well under way, and is set to continue. Do you remember the debate surrounding German REITs a few years ago? At the time, the left […]

Even I was caught off guard by the latest figures: Rents on new leases have increased by a mere 0.84% year on year in Munich, by 0% in Frankfurt am Main, by 0% in Düsseldorf, by 0% in Dresden, by 0% in Bonn, and by 0% in Wiesbaden. I’ll bet you, though, that policymaker will want to introduce the rent […]

When I bought my first piece of property in 1996 the real estate transfer tax was 2%. The rate was raised to 3.5% shortly thereafter. Germany's federalist reform of 2006, which made this a state-level tax, has triggered something of a race among the German states to charge the highest real estate transfer tax.

“The Wealth Report 2014” by Knight Frank has just been published. What makes this edition particularly interesting is the fact that – unlike many other wealth reports – it also takes owner-occupied and investment properties into account. Here are some fascinating facts: The report’s authors estimate that there are 167,699 ultra high net worth individuals (UHNWI) worldwide. The term is […]

A new science is born. It is the science of flat letting. The formative document of this science consists of 44 single-spaced pages. Its authors are the Federal Ministries of Justice and Consumer Protection. The title of the document – wait for it – reads: “Draft Bill for a Law to Slow the Rental Uplift on Strained Housing Markets and […]

Christian Democrats and Social Democrats have finally worked out a compromise. The modified draft bill is to be on tabled in the coming days, but its outline is already known. Project developers / principals may rejoice because new buildings will be completely exempt from the regulation – at least that is what a press release by the Christian Democrats of […]

Mario Draghi has been fêted by the media lately. As they have it, he is the man who solved the Eurozone crisis, and who did so with just a few words: "But there is another message I want to tell you. Within our man-date, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the Euro. And believe me, it will be enough."

Open-ended and closed-end investment funds are emerging from their most severe crisis in decades. Large segments of the market have collapsed. The sheer number of formerly prominent investment companies who pulled out of the market sounds a clear message.

Time and again, in this publication, I have voiced my concern that the irresponsible policy of the central banks will generate bubbles clear across asset classes. The other day, I cited the examples of government bonds in one of my commentaries. The rate of return on Spanish ten-year bonds is now the lowest it has been since 1789 – and […]

Is it a good thing or a bad thing that the rent freeze will possibly enter into effect not on 01 January 2015 but six months later? It depends, of course, on the angle you take, and above all on the question what sort of stake you have in the matter. Landlords will see it as an opportunity to use the few extra months left for raising rent rates in their residential housing stock.