Deutsche Hypo REECOX gains 3.4 % quarter on quarter
Germany was the only one of the countries monitored by REECOX to post gains over the previous quarter, which was marked by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. While the downward trend continued in April (-7.7 %), the months of May (+5.7 %) and June (+6 %) both contributed to the positive quarterly result, which now stands at 277.6 points (+3.4 %). On the whole, Germany’s real estate sector is experiencing the fastest recovery in Europe, reinforcing the importance of the German real estate market as a European “safe haven”.
Andreas Rehfus, Member of the Board of Managing Directors at Deutsche Hypo: “The coronavirus pandemic is a huge challenge for the real estate sector, as in other areas. After a significant decline in the Euro Score in the first quarter, an increasingly positive trend was noted at the end of the second quarter. Still, it is too early to make solid forecasts about the long-term effects. It remains to be seen where things will go from here.”
Once every quarter, the REECOX provides an overview of real estate market activity in Germany, France, the UK, Poland, Spain and the Netherlands. The index for each of the six countries is calculated using five input variables. In Germany, those variables are the DAX, the DIMAX, the European Commission’s Economic Sentiment Indicator for Germany, the basic rate of interest pursuant to Section 247 of the German Civil Code (BGB) and the interest rate for ten-year German government bonds. The headline German index, the DAX, responded to the COVID-19 crisis with a sharp loss of 25.0 % in the first quarter, followed by a pronounced bounce back in the second quarter. Germany’s DIMAX real estate share index traced a similar curve, with a near 17.0 % decline in the first quarter followed by a turnaround in the second quarter.
Harald Nolterieke, Head of the Munich office, says: “The industry has adjusted to the changes in circumstances brought about by the coronavirus. The banks have analysed their portfolios, and investment funds have reviewed their strategy. Transactions that had been postponed are increasingly being brought back online, and people are looking at new deals. The real estate market remains attractive, and prices are stable.”