The Berlin investment market for apartment buildings as well as residential and commercial buildings will record a stable development in 2025, but also a structural shift in demand. This is shown by an evaluation of the preliminary figures of the Expert Committee for Property Values in Berlin by Dahler Invest. According to this, the sales figures are almost unchanged compared to the previous year at 666 (-0.1%). The average purchase price per square metre of value-relevant floor space for apartment buildings has risen from €1,963/m² to €2,160/m². There was a slight decline in residential and commercial buildings, from €1,851/m² to €1,767/m². The purchase price factors were stable in 2025. For apartment buildings, the average annual net cold rent (factor) in 2025 was 23.4, 0.4 factors below the previous year’s value. For residential and commercial buildings, the factor amounted to 21.8 and thus exactly at the previous year’s level.
At the same time, cash turnover fell significantly by 23 percent to around 3.2 billion euros. The average purchase price per transaction also fell sharply: for apartment buildings from EUR 5.7 million to EUR 4.1 million (-29.0%) and for residential and commercial buildings from EUR 6.4 million to EUR 3.8 million (-41.2%).
“Residential continues to beat commercial and will remain one of the most popular asset classes for many private and semi-professional investors in 2025. Even in times of crisis, this type of use has proven to be a long-term stable investment with stable cash flows,” says Philip Hetzer, Managing Partner of DAHLER Invest. “Nevertheless, large banks in particular are reluctant to finance residential and commercial buildings. Small and medium-sized banks, on the other hand, are significantly more willing to finance residential and commercial buildings. In particular, with a commercial share of around 30 percent or more, banks value the properties as much more risky. This is also reflected in the price structure. For example, the price per square metre for apartment buildings in Berlin is around 22 percent higher than that of residential and commercial buildings.”
Vincent Papke, Managing Partner of DAHLER Invest, adds: “Due to the overall economic situation, many market participants, especially family offices, have adapted their investment strategies. The focus is on risk diversification and minimization. As a result, search profiles of investment behavior have changed. While the majority of the lot sizes sought in previous years were still around five million euros per property, in 2025 properties in the range of two and a half to three million euros were sought. Budgets have remained constant, but investors have preferred to acquire two properties for EUR 2.5 million each rather than one for EUR 5.0 million as part of their risk diversification strategy.”
With 55 transactions, most apartment buildings were sold in the Steglitz-Zehlendorf district in 2025, followed by Treptow-Köpenick with 45 sales and Tempelhof-Schöneberg with 42 sales. With only seven apartment buildings sold, the fewest transactions were registered for Marzahn-Hellersdorf. Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf has the highest price level for apartment buildings at €4,384/m², followed by Lichtenberg at €3,111/m² and Pankow at €2,529/m².
In residential and commercial buildings, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg leads the list of districts with the most transactions with 35 sales. This is followed by Pankow and Steglitz-Zehlendorf with 34 buildings each sold and Mitte with 33 sales. On average, the highest prices per square metre for residential and commercial buildings in 2025 were paid in Lichtenberg at €2,229/m², followed by Pankow at €2,033/m² and Marzahn-Hellersdorf at €2,020/m².
Philip Hetzer says: “As expected, the price turnaround in Berlin’s apartment building market has been heralded in 2025 – driven by persistently high demand for housing, rising rents, insufficient completion figures and a stabilised interest rate level. We expect this trend to continue in 2026. The Berlin market continues to offer attractive entry opportunities for long-term investors. Above all, wealthy private investors, dividers and family offices will continue to shape market activity this year.”
