The Berlin office letting market recorded take-up of approximately 563,800 sq m (including lettings and owner-occupier transactions) during the first nine months of 2026. This represents an increase of 54 per cent compared with the same period last year. The result is 17 per cent above the five-year average and in line with the ten-year average.
Major transactions drive market recovery
The strong result was largely driven by the return of large-scale transactions. Five agreements exceeding 10,000 sq m, together with numerous lettings ranging between 5,000 and 10,000 sq m, led to a significant increase in take-up compared with the previous year.
Among the largest transactions were BVG’s letting in the “Re:o” development totalling approximately 39,400 sq m, the Federal Ministry for the Environment’s owner-occupier project comprising 31,500 sq m, JetBrains’ 19,000 sq m lease at “Hainwerk”, and Strabag’s 12,000 sq m letting in the “B’Ella Berlin” development.
Dominic Rausch, Regional Manager East and Head of Office Agency Berlin at Cushman & Wakefield, comments on current market developments: “The significant increase in take-up can primarily be attributed to several large-scale lettings and owner-occupier decisions. Across the wider market, however, we continue to see caution, lengthy decision-making processes and a clear focus on high-quality space. While the current figures are encouraging, they should not be interpreted as a sign of a broad-based market recovery.”
Demand concentrated in central locations
The strongest demand was recorded in central office locations. The highest-performing submarket was “City East”, ahead of “City South”, “City West”, MediaSpree and Potsdamer Platz.
The ICT and digital sector once again represented the largest occupier group, followed by the construction and real estate sector, public administration, and transport and logistics. For transactions of 5,000 sq m and above, these four sectors accounted for approximately 85 per cent of total take-up.
Prime rent reaches new record high
Prime rent increased to €49.00 per sq m per month by the end of the third quarter, marking a new record high. Demand continues to focus on modern space in prime locations. Average rent, by contrast, grew at a much more moderate pace and most recently stood at €27.70 per sq m per month.
Dominic Rausch: “The market is becoming increasingly polarised. While high-quality space in central locations remains in demand, competition in the existing stock segment is intensifying. Older properties in particular often need to be positioned through rental adjustments or additional incentives.”
Vacancy rises only moderately
At the end of the third quarter, the vacancy rate stood at 10.6%. The increase has slowed noticeably over the course of the year, reflecting both stronger letting activity and a limited volume of completions.
Only 58,500 sq m of new office space was completed during the first nine months of the year. A larger share of completions is expected during the fourth quarter. At the same time, new speculative project starts remain rare, meaning the supply of new-build space is likely to decline over the medium term.
Outlook: Strong 2026, but uncertainty remains
For full-year 2026, Cushman & Wakefield expects take-up of approximately 700,000 sq m. This would represent the strongest result in several years. However, a substantial share of this volume is based on a small number of major transactions.
From today’s perspective, forecasts for market activity in 2027 remain subject to considerable uncertainty. Many occupiers continue to review their space strategies and are taking a cautious approach to long-term location decisions. At the same time, it remains unclear whether the public sector will once again emerge as a significant source of demand.
Dominic Rausch concludes: “The strong result for 2026 should not obscure the fact that the Berlin office market continues to face structural challenges. Demand is concentrated on high-quality space, while many occupiers remain cautious. For 2027, a normalisation of take-up currently appears more likely than a continuation of this year’s momentum.”
