Portfolio case study: unlocking the best performing single-family rental housing in Germany for a $1tn asset manager.
How we delivered an above-market yielding portfolio for a multi-national asset manager of >$1tn – from market intelligence to portfolio stabilisation in 12 months in 2021-2022.

Opportunity
Germany has strong demand for housing in the “Top 7” cities
Within Europe, Germany has some of the highest demand for rental housing in its “Top 7” cities which include Hamburg, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Berlin and Munich, as well as their surrounding commuter areas, which often present a greater volume of mis-priced assets offering more attractive yields. Driving this demand is strong population growth, high volumes of renters and a preference for smaller household sizes:
Strong population growth
Population growth in Top 7 cities vs. rest of Germany

High % of rents
Distribution between owners and renters

GDP and employment growth indicate significant opportunity
As an example, we’ve identified that Cologne’s GDP and employment growth has steadily outperformed the German average. Between 2005 and 2020, Cologne’s GDP grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.52% compared to the German average, which stood at 1.04%.
During the same period, Cologne’s employment grew at a rate of 1.47%, versus the German average of 0.88%. These are indicators that support a capital and rent growth opportunity, not only in the Cologne market, but also in its surrounding areas. In many areas of Germany, high rental price growth continues to outstrip supply and this growth isn’t limited to its cities.
Cologne and Rhein-Erft-Kreis
are prime rental districts
Taking Cologne again – where rentals make up 71.9% of housing – and one of its neighbouring commuter districts, Rhein-Erft-Kreis, as an example: the growing demand for rental properties within these two districts has resulted in rental price growth of 12% over the past five years and a significant drop in the average time it takes for an apartment to rent, falling from around 10 weeks to around five weeks in Rhein-Erft-Kreis, and from around six weeks to around three weeks in Cologne. With population and disposable incomes forecast to grow annually by 1.2% and 1.0% respectively over the next 10 years, demand and rental prices will continue to drive upwards in both regions.
Outcome: West Germany and Hamburg SFR portfolio
Our automated lead generation and filtering reduces the ‘time to inspect’ from 7 days to 1 day
A – Analysis at scale: >70,000 leads generated through D2C, broker partnerships and scraping listing websites.
B – Accurate de-duplication: Consolidation and analysis of 15+ data sources to gain complete market coverage.
C – Data enrichment: Location and macro data overlay is used to advance asset analysis.
D – Yield estimates: Yields estimated pre-inspection to identify high value investments.
Key Metrics
Analysed
27,000+ | €20bn
Properties using IMMO’s proprietary technology
Inspected
1,800+ | > €570m
Conducted in-person by our local team of experts
Annual acquisition run rate
€210mn
For residential assets across Germany
Assets
>200
Assets under management
Portfolio occupancy rate
99%
Across acquired assets in Germany
Yield
3.7%
Average gross entry yield across acquired properties
Get in touch with us to discuss our track record in detail, and see what we can do for your investment strategy.
Asset case studies
Selected assets from our portfolios.
Hellbrookstieg
(Barmbek-Nord, Germany)
50 sqm
1 Bedroom
1953
€240,000

Before renovation
After renovation
Achieved metrics
UW Rent
€1,100
Achieved rent
€1,280
vs. UW +16.3%
Achieved gross yield
6%
Refurb costs
€16,353
Almendrales
(Madrid, Spain)
63 sqm
3 Bedroom
1952
€105,000

Before renovation
After renovation
Achieved metrics
UW Rent
€850
Renovation Uplift
22%
Achieved gross yield
7.6%
Refurb costs
€29,013
Reventlowstrasse (Othmarschen, Germany)
93 sqm
2 Bedroom
1932
€405,000

Before renovation
After renovation
Achieved metrics
UW Rent
€2,300
Achieved rent
€2,400
vs. UW +4.3%
Achieved gross yield
7%
Refurb costs