MODERATE DECLINE IN COMPARISON OF TOP MARKETS
The effects of the Corona pandemic and the lockdown in the fourth quarter are clearly reflected in the take-up figures for both the Cologne and the nationwide office markets. Thus, with a volume totaling 211,000 m², the result for the cathedral city in the crisis year 2020 was a good 31% lower than in 2019. Against the backdrop that the previous year's results was missed even more significantly in some other German A-locations, the negative overall annual performance of the Cologne office market is comparatively moderate. The fact that take-up has risen steadily over the course of 2020 and that the strongest quarterly result was achieved in the last three months despite the upturn in infection numbers is a source of optimism. A key factor here was the major deal concluded by KPMG for 19,700 m² in the joint venture project between ECE and Strabag in Messecity. An analysis of the submarkets reveals that demand was strongest in both the central and peripheral locations with 39,500 m² in the City, 38,500 m² in Ehrenfeld/Braunsfeld and 36,000 m² in Porz/Airport.
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