Publications

- February 1, 2017: Vol. 11, Number 02

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Think small: The investment market for micro-living in Germany is growing

by Horst Lieder

A vast surplus in demand, a balanced risk/return profile and positive future prospects make micro-living in Germany an attractive alternative investment for international institutional investors.

Demand for micro-apartments in Germany is growing rapidly. In the centres of major cities and in university cities, the available supply is far outstripped by demand for student apartments, micro-apartments, serviced apartments and comparable small-scale housing.

For historical reasons — because three- or four-person households were the norm in the past — there are very few one- and two-room apartments in Germany. Only around 10 percent of existing housing in Germany is made up of these smaller residential units. In Stuttgart, for example, one- and two-room apartments together account for just under 7 percent of all housing, even though more than half of all households are single-person households. There is a similar situation in Berlin, Munich and Hamburg. D

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