The recently published house price index of the Federal Statistical Office shows that the prices for residential real estate in the 1st quarter of 2021 rose by 9.4% compared to the previous year and by 1.5% compared to the previous quarter. In the Corona year 2020, the house price index rose by 7.8% according to the now revised figures, the provisional value was +7.3%. The sub-markets in the major cities that are particularly in demand have continued to rise significantly in price over the past 12 months, especially for apartments. In large cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, prices rose by 11.3% and in the top 7 cities of Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Düsseldorf by 11.1%. It is also interesting that the prices for single and two-family houses in sparsely populated rural counties increased by 11.3%. The Corona Pandemic has prompted many city dwellers to rethink and real estate in the country has become significantly more attractive. The law on the distribution of brokerage costs, which came into force at the end of 2020, had an effect with a decrease in incidental acquisition costs of 0.3% compared to the previous year and 6.5% compared to the previous quarter. In addition to the brokerage costs, the real estate transfer tax and the notary fees are also included in the calculation of the acquisition costs.
Source: Press releases from the Federal Statistical Office.
