Berlin City Centre

Im thinking of investing in property in Berlin City. I have read up on alot of interesting material as part of my research i.e. Rent control, 0% CGT after 10 years, Tenant rights vs Landlord rights, projected economic recovery, property mgt agencies etc etc.
Daft.ie(Sherry Fitz) has some very interesting property for sale in Berlin city centre from a studio apt @ €22.5k(Kienbergtower, Marzahn) to a 2 bed-room apt @ €90k(Prenzlauer Berg). The interior pictures of the studio apt look decent....
I would be very grateful if anyone could advise me on these two areas. At €22.5k, I am not expecting Marzahn to be a high-society location but it would be very interesting to hear if there is any potential for this area? I plan on investing for the long-term(>10 years).
Needless to say, I will view all property personally before commiting to purchase. Thanks.

Have a search on this forum for other discussions on Berlin, e.g.

Was in Berlin last summer myself on vac & was surprised at how cheap property seemed. It's not all rosy though, some German property funds have been in difficulty of late. See this reuters article

I read here that up to 80% of people in Germany rent. While this may sound great at first for investors, it made me wonder who will buy your property should you ever wish or need to sell it?

Also just to consider that there is talk of Merkels govt removing the 0% CGT.

I'm also looking at apartments in Berlin. These apartments are already rented and cost approx. 100k.
One scheme has a 10 yr rental guarantee (4%) but the rent stays at a fixed amount for the 10 yrs. The other has no guarantee, but is closer to the city centre and therefore higher rents which will continue to increase over the ten years. At the moment there is no CGT after 10 years.
Also you have to give the tenant 3 yrs notice if you are planning to sell.

A friend and I are both thinking of Berlin. He is travelling there this week so I will post here if he finds out anything interesting.
Even though you pay no CGT in Germany you will still be hit for it here!

Jane1 said:

The other has no guarantee, but is closer to the city centre and therefore higher rents which will continue to increase over the ten years.

Click to expand...

What mechanism exactly are you relying on to ensure that rents will continue to increase over ten years?

Something worth reading
[broken link removed]

Think positive!!
Of course the rents can drop even further in Berlin, but I'm hopeful for a recovery in the German economy over the next ten years. There is a bit of a gamble involved chasing capital appreciation. Anyway it will give me an excuse to go back cos its a great city to party in!

Thanks for that link hmmm. It was a very interesting and honest report.

Sherry Fitzgerald / Signature Capital are currently in the process of setting up a geared residential property fund, primarily focused in Berlin. 7-10 years, expecting 15% pre tax return p.a. Has anyone looked at this? Any comments?