Seems that Berlins tough times are going to be history in near future, at least signs of recovery are obvious everywhere. Outlook for the once divided city is bright and the German capital gains more and more attention and recognition world wide. Celebrating 20 years of reunification, Berlin uses its not so glamorous past to show off its free and affluent future.

For me, Berlin has been and still is Germany’s SOHO, Greenwich, Wapping, Notting Hill or what ever other trendy city quarter you like to name. Soon after the wall came down, creative’s, artists and musicians moved to Berlin and enjoyed the open minded and free spirit you could and still can experience everywhere. The city is undergoing a transformation into a very much hot spot in Germany. Berlin’s trendsetter potential is well known and a recently published article in the Telegraph headlines their story the following “Berlin joins the cool crowd” what perfectly describes the city’s current status.
 

Sometimes, I believe all these positive news about Berlin’s growth and bright future outlook is so new to the city that it’s hard for Berliners to handle them and so it’s still very common to question everything rather than believe in the good. Of course, there is still a long way to go considering where the city is coming from and what difficulties it had to deal with – financial, economical and social wise. Therefore, it’s even more welcome when positive news makes a circuit.

Just today, Financial Times Germany published an article called “The capital on a roll” where they look at Berlin under the attention of the new international airport BBI who is scheduled to open for business in June 2012. The newly constructed Willy-Brandt-Airport, named after the former politician, is located in the very south of Berlin and will replace all three existing airports (airport Tempelhof already closed for business). The new and approx 2 Billion Euro expensive airport is planed to handle up to 27 million travellers with an additional extension planed to handle up to 45 million passengers in the end. Right now, the airport will rank Germanys 3rd largest after Frankfurt and Munich. Politics and economy link great hope with the airport. The region Berlin-Brandenburg is booming for quite some time, but which is barely perceived. A recent city ranking by the “Hamburgerisches Weltwirtschaftsinstitute” (HWWI) did take a look at 30 German cities where Berlin made a jump from the 24th to the 8th rank. HWWI boss Thomas Straubhaar states: “The growth engine started and locational advantages such as education, accessibility improved by far and continue to have an effect.
 

Berlin’s senator for economics states: “Already this year, the real national output will be higher than before the crises.” The long time not recognized industry is going to become more important again and the new BBI airport is a very important prerequisite for even more growth.

We experience Berlins increasing appeal by a broad range of interested parties from all over the globe looking for real estate opportunities in Berlin. We are proud to be able to offer them one of the most sparkling luxury residential developments currently available – Yoo Berlin. With celebrating the ground breaking ceremony few weeks ago and construction on its way, the development will be scheduled to open in 2013. Just last week, I was happy to attend the official launch party of the Yoo Berlin by Philippe Starck development which took place at the projects beautiful showroom, located on site. Philippe Starck - the iconic star designer, Eike Becker – the architect of the buildings exterior, Dr. Thomas Wolfelsberger – CEO of Peach Property Group (the developer), Jon Hitchcox – co-founder of Yoo and many other guests form showbiz, culture and economic gathered at the successful launch party. Yoo Berlin is going to be Berlin’s most successful luxury residential development with already 30% of all planed 87 apartments sold off plan. Yoo Berlin, the city’s most luxurious new scheme will be home to apartments, townhouses and penthouses as well as a boutique hotel and some small commercial units. The glamorous 10-storey block is located right on the river Spree and in close proximity to the governmental district, the famous shopping street Friedrichstrasse and all the fancy restaurants, bars and galleries of Berlin Mitte.

I am looking forward to go back to Berlin for another trip and would be happy to provide all interested people with more detailed information on Yoo Berlin or any other possible real estate opportunities. Please contact me me for more information.

Posted by:  Peter Rabitz

Berlin, Germany – no other German city is linked that tight to the country’s history. Berlin has been and still will be a focal point of Germanys politics and is also becoming an even more important player in the lifestyle world by all world wide metropolises. Berlin’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week or the international film festival Berlinale have put Germany’s capital into the first row of international interest not only by members of the movie or fashion industry. More and more creative and lifestyle oriented PR, marketing, advertising and media companies made Berlin their global hub and want to profit from the city’s energy. Most foreigners feel set back in times when New York or London radiated this certain and very special flair.

After the wall came down, the city quickly metamorphosed from a more likely working class dominated development into a more lifestyle and quality of life influenced metropolis. Still, there are other German cities such as Hamburg, Munich or Düsseldorf which are better known for their high-end living and luxury lifestyle throughout, but Berlin experienced a higher than average demand for luxury living these days. High end real estate, especially in Berlin’s city center, is rare and much sought-after.

With Yoo Berlin by architect Eike Becker and iconic design star Philippe Starck, this demand should be satisfied to the highest expectations. On a history-charged location, right in the middle of Berlin Mitte and on site of the former and famous Friedrichstadtpalast, the new crystal like solitaire will be home to luxury apartments, penthouses and townhouses as well as a hotel inclusive Wellness-spa, bar and a café.

Thursday, September 16^th 2010, marked another milestone in the developments progress. Representatives of the development like John Hitchcox (co-founder of YOO), Berlins Cabinet Building Director Regula Lüscher, Dr. Thomas Wolfelsberger (CEO of Peach Property Group) and Eike Becker (Architect of Yoo Berlin) (f.l.t.r. at the main photo) executed the groundbreaking ceremony with a symbolic turn of the first spade full of earth.The first phase of construction consists of all the foundation works where more than 350 concrete piles will be brought in the swamp like underground almost 35m deep. The construction of approx. 124 underground parking spaces, special construction is needed due to the Berlin’s typical sandy and hydrated grounds. Once the costly foundation work is completed, the building can go up. Yoo Berlin is scheduled for completion by end of 2012. The sale of all real estate available started already and the first residences are sold. Some of the best units facing the river Spree or some of the penthouses boasting amazing views onto Berlin’s skyline are sold already. With a further increasing interest we are confident that Yoo Berlin is as successful as its predecessors in London, Sydney or Munich just to name a few. The Yoo brand became a much sought-after label for high-end living where pretty much each unit is a unique property for itself. Fans of Yoo watch closely all news about any new developments by the Yoo brand because they know the properties not only feature a much sought-after lifestyle, but also offer quite some appreciation of their investments. Feel free to contact us under info@wetaginternational.com to get to know more about this exciting new development. Just wanted to mention that because of the strength of the Swiss Franc against the Euro, an investment in a stylish city dwelling could be of great interest. Not only for your own use, but also to rent it out since there is also an increasing interest for high-end and furnished apartments in Berlin.

Posted by:  Peter Rabitz

On Tuesday August 31st 2010, developers behind the holiday resort under construction in Andermatt reached an important milestone when they began laying the foundation of the Andermatt Swiss Alps project and celebrating the much sought-after ground breaking ceremony.

The Chedi 5* luxury hotel will be the crown jewel of the future holiday destination, Andermatt Swiss Alps, and will link the historical old part of Andermatt with the new village that is going to be built. Switzerland’s new Alpine it-destination will not only offer four and five star hotels, like the 5* Chedi hotel and the just recently announced Radisson Blue, but also several real estate investments such as apartments, villas, penthouses and lofts. Furthermore, there is a PGA standard golf course planned, a wellness and spa center, and a new to be restructured ski resort that will offer great advanced skiing. 

The region of Andermatt is well known for its snow quality featuring long winter seasons with tons of powder like snow great for cross country skiing and snowboarding. The developer of Andermatt Swiss Alps will invest in Andermatt’s current ski infrastructure and, even more important, combine the Andermatt resort with the surrounding resorts like Sedrun to make it one of the largest ski destinations in the Swiss Alps.

Mr. Samih Sawiris and other attendees of the foundation stone ceremony affirmed the importance of the development. Click here to see more impressions of the ceremony. With the construction of the development on a former Swiss military training area and the approximately CHF1.5 billion investment, Andermatt will become one of Switzerland’s greatest touristic regions. 

The 5* Chedi Hotel, which will be built on the site of the former legendary luxury Bellevue hotel, is going to be the luxury spear head of Andermatt Swiss Alps. The hotel will feature 50 hotel rooms, 119 real estate opportunities such as apartments, lofts and penthouses, 2 restaurants, bars and lounges, wellness and spa facilities and many more luxury amenities. With construction on its way, the hotel is scheduled to open in winter season 2013/14 where it will welcome its guests and property owner to move in or to just start their vacation.

Please contact us should you wish to receive further information on all current real estate opportunities available and send an email to andermatt@wetag.ch or call +41 (0)91 751 3106.

 

Posted by:  Peter Rabitz

At this point, I don’t need to stress again how beautiful and exiting Berlin is. I’ve explained this adequately before and most of you know already that this is just true. There is one thing I recently came across that I wasn’t previously aware of – Berlin seem to be a heaven for rental tenants, as I’ve read in “EXBERLINER”, an English-language magazine for and about Berlin.

16 percent of Berliners live in their own property while the the national average is a much higher 52 percent. The story as to why Berlin has so many tenants, lodgers and passers-through starts almost 60 years ago when Berlin had a housing shortage after the Second World War. In addition, German civil code is another detail that supports this trend by giving tenants more rights than in other comparable countries.

While most rental contracts don’t have an expiry date, it is also very hard to get kicked out of your apartment except a few minor specific details (i.e. not paying your rent, landlord’s own use of the apartment) – tenants seem to be in paradise with laws that allow tenants to “feel at home”. So some Berliners have made subletting a profitable business. This model looks interesting if you have to leave town for extended periods because of work. The landlord is not allowed to influence the tenant’s life, so if they need to move to another place for a work-related reason, the landlord has to agree to a subtenant. Imagine, you buy a second home property in Berlin, a nice and well located apartment – you might be able to have covered your mortgage by subletting your flat on a short-term basis even you don’t have to. And all that can be managed by an agency specialized in such business. Feel free to contact us so we can get you a place to buy so you can sublet afterwards. How does that sound?

Source: magazine EXBERLINER, article by Prue Gordema

Posted By: Peter Rabitz