Prices for owner occupied housing in Germany in the first quarter of 2010 fell by 0.9 % against the previous quarter and by 1.5 % year-on-year (see table attached). These figures are based on properties sold and financed in the first three months of the current year.

The vdp Price Index for Owner Occupied Housing is calculated every quarter by vdpResearch, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Association of German Pfandbrief Banks (Verband deutscher Pfandbriefbanken, vdp). It consists of the hedonic price indices for single family houses and condominiums; these indices are weighted according to the number of single family houses and condominiums in existence. Like the overall index, both subindices slipped somewhat at the beginning of the current year. In the first quarter of this year, 0.7% less was paid for single family houses of comparable quality than in the fourth quarter of 2009. Prices for condominiums receded by 1.6% in the same period.

“The development of the index is evidence of the relative stability of the German property market in the European setting,” said Jens Tolckmitt, Chief Executive of the vdp. He pointed out that it is remarkable that, despite the very weak macroeconomic development in the past year, demand for existing single family houses and condominiums remained stable.

Berlin, May 17, 2010