MIPIM 2026 – Voices from the Real Estate Industry

Matthias Euler, Managing Director Germany & Austria, Greystar

"The market continues to be dominated by collective wait-and-see, even if there are the first tentative rays of hope in the classic residential segment. But the absolute 'everybody's darling' remains PBSA. Here, massive capital is currently chasing for available properties. What clouds the mood, however, is the nervousness with regard to Berlin. The fear of further regulation is deep-seated and threatens to slow down necessary investments in housing construction even more."

Jan Heidelmann, Managing Director, GRR GARBE Retail

"This year's MIPIM underlines the growing interest of institutional investors in local supply properties, especially in food-anchored retail properties. As one of the few specialized managers with a local presence in the key European markets, we benefit from direct exchange with international investors, financing partners and market participants. At the same time, there is currently a strong pipeline in Germany and Europe, and an attractive environment for new transactions is also emerging for the coming months."

Dr. Matthias Heßler, Founder / Head of Legal & Transactions, NEXT Generation Invest

"The mood at this year's MIPIM is much more constructive than last year. Many conversations show that capital is basically available – but investors are paying more attention to the quality and resilience of projects than before. Investments with stable cash flows and long-term social relevance are particularly in demand. In our view, these include infrastructure and impact-oriented strategies in particular. Projects in social infrastructure – for example in the areas of education or affordable housing – combine economic stability with measurable social benefits. It is precisely this combination that many investors are currently focusing on."

Antje Lubitz, COO, Ehret+Klein AG

"There will be no 'business as usual' in real estate management – this insight also characterises many discussions at MIPIM. The times of fragmented real estate structures are coming to an end. Investors no longer want separate silos of asset and property management, but integrated services with clear operational responsibility. Those who reduce complexity and offer management from a single source also give international investors the freedom to make strategic decisions. This is exactly where ehret+klein positions itself as an integrated partner for entering the German market."

Sebastian Schöberl, Managing Partner & Founder, MONTANO REAL ESTATE

"The disillusionment can be felt everywhere, combined with the feeling of having to accept the new reality and acknowledging that there will be no trend reversal in 2026 for the time being. The office asset class is alive if the parameters are right. It will be exciting to see whether the industry will manage to convey to the public the need for private investment in social infrastructure and establish this asset class to a relevant extent."

Boris Schran, Founding Partner, Peakside Capital Advisors

"MIPIM is a suitable platform for us to discuss current market trends and explore new investment opportunities. Especially in a challenging market environment, face-to-face conversations are crucial to identify opportunities and initiate transactions. In view of the severe shortage of housing in Germany's major cities, we are currently selectively examining the entry into new residential construction for the first time – especially in the affordable housing segment. At the same time, our core themes remain ESG renovations in the residential portfolio, trophy offices and food-anchored retail. Our pipeline is well filled and we continue to plan targeted acquisitions in these areas. The discussions at the trade fair help us to explore opportunities for investments and to advance concrete projects."

Sven Schüssler, Managing Partner, PASENDIA Real Estate GmbH

"MIPIM showed that the wave of refinancing is putting further pressure on the market. At the same time, international, especially Anglo-Saxon, capital is increasingly turning its attention to Germany. Those who tap into these sources of capital expand their financing scope, especially where senior banks reach their limits due to regulation or risk aversion."

Andreas Stegmann, CEO, HT Group

"As every year, the trade fair commentaries will be published just in time for MIPIM. At the moment, there is a lot to read about the 'working fair' and new optimism in the industry. In fact, more products are coming onto the market again, and the industry is also talking more often about transactions again. But the truth is that fundraising remains extremely challenging. Especially with German real estate, many investors are still missing the returns they expect. Other real estate markets are already a good deal further ahead in this respect. The pressure to close this yield gap and implement structural improvements thus remains high. For asset and investment managers, this still means a lot of work – we are definitely still a long way from 'business as usual'."

Alexander Heinzmann, CEO, BPD Immobilienentwicklung GmbH

"MIPIM 2026 has shown that housing construction can succeed together. Cooperation between cities, investors and project developers and new solutions are crucial. If we advance projects in partnership, we can create new housing more quickly – and realize more affordable apartments."

Vaclav Matousek, CEO, HB Reavis

"The European real estate market is moving again and is acting more selectively, disciplined and focused than before. The current financial statements clearly show that the focus is on projects with real value creation potential. After the volatile years, investors have learned to accept uncertainty as part of the new normal. Europe is in a good position with its strong fundamentals. What we need now is speed and courage. The mood is not euphoric, but constructive - and that is exactly a healthy foundation for the coming years."

Gerald Tschörner, Managing Director, Red Square GmbH

"This year's MIPIM has shown that the real estate industry is still in a transition phase. Many players would like to invest more again, but the financing crisis, continued high costs and excessively high land prices are slowing down the market. In most cases, the purchase prices must be well below the highs of the boom years in order for projects to be economically viable again. In particular, the faltering exit is dampening the market in the long term. At the same time, a slight improvement in sentiment was noticeable: While the majority of the industry sees no change compared to the previous year, a minority expects at least a moderate improvement with feasible opportunities."

Jan Bewarder, Member of the Executive Board, REM CAPITAL AG

"This year's MIPIM was much less show and much more substance. Instead of a lot of trade fair rhetoric, it was often directly about projects and financing solutions. Energy-efficient renovation in particular was a dominant topic. At the same time, we see that industrial investors from China and the USA are starting to look to Germany again. Incidentally, AI was hardly an issue – human intelligence was particularly in demand for financing and structuring. The mood remains subdued, but at least not worse than last year. The bottom line is that the market feels a bit like the weather at the beginning of MIPIM: changeable, but with sun on the horizon."

Yama Mahasher, CEO, Westbridge

"In view of economic uncertainties and increasing regulatory requirements, investors are not only concerned with whether the market will come back, but which properties can be operated economically in the long term. Investment decisions are therefore increasingly based on the resilience of consumption data, realistically tapped efficiency potentials and plausible decarbonization paths of buildings."

Paulina Stach, Head of DACH, SINGU

"MIPIM in Cannes showed that the real estate industry is entering a new phase. Despite the continued challenging environment, optimism was palpable, especially with regard to more stable market fundamentals, stronger capital availability and long-term investment strategies. At the same time, the role of technology and artificial intelligence was once again in the spotlight. Topics such as intelligent building control, data-based decisions, energy efficiency and the decarbonisation of existing properties of all asset classes dominated the discussions."

Dirk Tönges, Geschäftsführer / Managing Director, MVGM Holding Germany GmbH

"As property managers, we are only affected to a limited extent by the volatility of the transaction market, by good or bad sentiments at MIPIM – our services are needed in every market phase. However, quality is decisive: efficient management, consistent cost control and sustainable value enhancement are more important today than ever. Good colleagues, digital processes and AI are the basis for this, as is the regular exchange with our clients. We meet them in a concentrated way at MIPIM."