The consequences of working from home are creating space for thousands of apartments in Germany because fewer offices are needed. But only some of them can be converted legally and technically, and only some of them are economically viable, as a study by the Ifo Institute and real estate consultant Colliers found. The result is also likely to be more expensive apartments. So converting offices is not a “game changer” for the housing shortage, says Ifo expert Simon Krause. It can only alleviate the situation.
For the study, Ifo and Colliers looked at the real estate markets in the seven largest German cities. Given the current and expected office vacancy rate as well as technical and legal restrictions, they see enough space to build around 60,000 apartments for 102,000 people. For smaller cities, the authors assume that the potential is smaller due to lower rents and a smaller housing shortage.
But it is highly unlikely that 60,000 apartments will actually be created from offices in the seven cities. Because if more than half of them were converted, the conversion would simply not be profitable, says Krause. On the one hand, this means that space will be lost, and on the other hand, a lot of conversion work will be required – new corridors, new heating technology, new walls, to name a few examples. In the end, the office will be turned back into a shell and then converted into apartments.
These costs are also the reason why Krause and his co-authors expect that offices will not be converted into affordable housing. In order for the conversion to be worthwhile for investors, they would have to aim for more expensive housing.
But Krause also sees opportunities to create more apartments from offices. For this to happen, however, cities and politicians would have to address the issue early on. If development plans and building regulations were changed, this could help to make more potential space available.
For vacant offices where conversion into apartments is not an option, the study authors are calling for “creative reuse concepts”. They see one possibility in partial conversions that make the buildings more attractive with local supply, retail or catering facilities, particularly on the ground floor. The study names medical facilities, cultural or creative spaces or even leisure and sports facilities as other options.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240920-930-238118/1
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