There have been some new additions to the ranking of the most attractive European cities to invest in the real estate sector this year. Last year Lisbon took over from Berlin at the top, however this year, Paris has overtaken the Portuguese capital and we see the addition of two Spanish cities.
This is the reading we can get from the study carried out by the PwC and Urban Land Institute consulting firm, after carrying out surveys of investment funds, real estate firms, banks and other professional investors.
According to their findings, the French capital will be the star of real estate investment in Europe this year, thanks above all to the urban development project it is designing known as Greater Paris, focused on extending the city limits and creating new business centres and new economic poles that encourage innovation. This is a project that began years ago and will continue to be developed throughout this decade, with a planned investment of more than 30,000 million euros.
One step behind Paris is Berlin, one of the cities that usually tops this ranking, followed by Frankfurt. London is the fourth city on the list, after having disappeared from the top 20 last year.
Madrid is the first Spanish name to appear in the ranking and is in fifth place, after falling one place from last year, while Barcelona is back up to ninth place again, after having dropped to 27th place in the previous ranking.
Spain is the second European country with more than one city in the top 10, only surpassed by Germany which sees 4 of its cities make the list, an outcome that demonstrates that the domestic real estate market there continues to be one of the most attractive for investors. What are the reasons? It is one of the fastest growing European economies, one of the countries where alternative assets (student residences, retirement homes, affordable rental projects...) have more potential and affordable rent compared to other places in the Old Continent.
Ahead of the Catalan capital, Barcelona, we can find Amsterdam, Munich and Hamburg. Lisbon closes the top 10 this year, surpassing Milan, Dublin, Brussels, Warsaw, Vienna, Luxembourg, Zurich, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Prague, these cities making up the top 20 respectively.
Here is the list of the top 10 cities that will attract the most real estate investment in 2020, according to the plans of the large international operators themselves:
1. Paris
2. Berlin
3. Frankfurt
4. London
5. Madrid
6. Amsterdam
7. Munich
8. Hamburg
9. Barcelona
10. Lisbon
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