Buy an apartment in Frankfurt – Yield, houses & investments: Real estate agent interview

Rent or buy in Frankfurt – Beautiful period buildings, detached houses and villas. Frankfurt offers you everything! Real estate agent Lydia Ishikawa tells you everything you need to know about Frankfurt in her interview with FIV Magazine. Should you rather buy and rent? How good are the returns in Frankfurt and the surrounding area? And which districts are the most beautiful in Frankfurt to live in? Find out all this and more here in this article. More broker recommendations for Frankfurt. Also in Germany in our article: Realtors Germany.

Rent, buy, live in Frankfurt

A good start in the real estate world is always buying your first apartment. Lydia Ishikawa explains in her interview with us her experience with real estate in a good A-location. The yield here depends on the type of house or apartment. For example, microapartments have different exploitation possibilities than single-family homes. The meso location is also decisive for pricing, whether in Hausen, Bockenheim and other districts such as the Gutleutviertel or Eschersheim.

Here Frankfurt is located in Germany:

Frankfurt up close:

Rent: Contract & Settlement

After the successful purchase of the property and the execution of the purchase contract, you naturally want to furnish your newly acquired property according to your individual needs. From the living room furnishings, to the garden design, nothing stands in their way of your creative imagination.

Buy: Return on investment through real estate

In our interview, you will learn everything about real estate and returns in Frankfurt. Should you buy a property in Frankfurt or is it more worthwhile to buy nearby, for example in Offenbach or Wiesbaden?

Real estate agent interview about real estate in Frankfurt

The first condominium or real estate as an investment? In this interview you will learn the most important tips & tricks. Buy, rent, live in Frankfurt but also tips for capital investments. We ask the questions, she provides the answers.

Lydia Ishikawa Real Estate: Interview Partner

FIV: Before we talk about Frankfurt and its real estate market and your recommendations for tenants and buyers, we would like to know a little more about your agency Lydia Ishikawa Immobilien. Could you briefly summarize for our readers what your agency does and what you specialize in?

Lydia Ishikawa: As an owner-managed company, we have been active in the Frankfurt real estate market for 30 years. Our main focus is the marketing of high-quality residential and commercial real estate, including both rentals and sales. Our international, well-trained and very experienced team is at our clients’ disposal with full commitment.

Favorite real estate: old building or new construction

FIV: As a broker in Frankfurt, which properties do you personally prefer to broker?

Lydia Ishikawa: We actually broker any property, but we are fortunate in that I can select the right employee depending on the type of property. So among us there are lovers of old buildings, Bauhaus lovers, lovers of new buildings. I personally love the 50s and 60s buildings.

The Lydia Ishikawa Real Estate Team:

Neighborhoods with a future: Lerchesberg & Nordend

FIV: Neighborhoods for Singles, Families & Co.: For those who don’t live in Frankfurt yet and want to move to Frankfurt, which neighborhoods have a future? Where should you move to in Frankfurt if you want to live nicely?

Lydia Ishikawa: My favorite part of town is Sachsenhausen. Sitting outside in the evening on Schweizer Straße in one of the many restaurants is like a day’s vacation. In Sachsenhausen-North there are beautiful old-style buildings, Sachsenhausen-South is known for its single-family houses and Lerchesberg for its villas.

For young people the Nordend is a good address

Here, within walking distance of the city center, there are not only numerous well-maintained apartments in old buildings, but also many restaurants and shopping opportunities. If you want to live a little outside, then the Riedberg is a good place. Many families have settled here.

Real estate market development: policies and supports

FIV: Rents are a big topic, all over Germany. How have the real estate market and rents in Frankfurt developed in recent years, and how will they develop in the future?

Lydia Ishikawa: In Frankfurt, there is a lack of housing for low-income earners. Here, the policy of privatizing social housing is still making itself felt. The rental prices for new apartments show an upward trend, because here the rent index does not apply.

FIV: In Germany, more people rent than buy. What would you recommend to a young couple or even a single person, renting or buying in Frankfurt?

Lydia Ishikawa: With interest rates still low, I would recommend young people to buy. Here I would also like to see more help from the state for young families.

First home through credit & financing

FIV: Anyone who rents in Frankfurt is relatively flexible and can move if necessary. Anyone who buys a property, whether a home or a condominium, is tied to the property for the long term at least by the loan or the financing. What are typical first-time buyer mistakes from your experience as a real estate agent, and how can you avoid them?

Lydia Ishikawa: Often the loan installment is lower than the rent would have been, depending on how high the equity portion was. In this case, you can invest in real estate with peace of mind, because if you relocate, you could rent out that apartment and use the income to pay off the loan. When buying, however, one should make sure that the apartment is also rentable. For example, a 100-square-meter two-room apartment that was ideal for owner-occupancy will be far more difficult to rent out than one that is only 60 square meters.

An apartment in downtown Frankfurt:

Incidental purchase costs and land transfer tax

FIV: The purchase price of a property is one thing, but what ancillary costs and taxes must buyers in Frankfurt expect?

Lydia Ishikawa: Incidental costs in Frankfurt, and actually in Germany in general, are very high. The biggest item is the land transfer tax of 6 percent in Hesse, followed by brokerage costs of 3.57 percent and notary and transcription costs of 1.5 percent.

• Real estate transfer tax: 6%
• Brokerage costs: 3.57%
• Notary & transcription costs: 1.5%

Real estate as an investment: What has a future?

FIV: Frankfurt’s districts for real estate investment – we come still to real estates as capital investment in Frankfurt, for those, which want to buy and letting. If our*r Leser*in for the purchase with following letting, decides: Which two districts or satellites around Frankfurt would you recommend to a buyer for their capital investment in Frankfurt? In your opinion as an expert, where do the most future opportunities lie?

Lydia Ishikawa: I would recommend Sachsenhausen, Nordend, Westend, Riedberg and the Europaviertel.

FIV: In your opinion, what type of real estate has a future in Frankfurt, what should one invest in? Small, large, existing, new construction?

Lydia Ishikawa: With the existing property, I know what I’m getting, and the numerous defects that have to be worked out in new buildings have already been taken care of. In addition, prices for new-build apartments are already very high at the moment. Two- and three-room apartments for singles and dinks, i.e. couples with “double income, no kids,” are interesting here, but also single-family homes for young families.

The best districts for capital investment:

• Sachsenhausen
• North End
• Westend
• Riedberg
• European Quarter

Experience in the sale in Frankfurt

FIV: Finally, one more question: You mentioned the typical mistakes when buying a property. Many buy, but some also want to sell. As an experienced broker in Frankfurt, what tips can you give to those who are selling a property for the first time? What are the first steps and how do you successfully sell a property in Frankfurt?

Lydia Ishikawa: The first step is realistic pricing. You should rely on the judgment and experience of experts. They are close to the market and can judge it best. When selling real estate, I also recommend choosing an experienced, trustworthy broker who specializes in the type of real estate your property is selling, and then staying in close contact with this expert.

FIV: Thanks to Lydia Ishikawa Real Estate for the interview!

Buying your first apartment: Owner occupation or capital investment

You want to realize the dream of the first own property, but do not know where to start? Learn everything about the first home and the most important steps in our article.

• Buy first apartment

Rent, buy, live in Frankfurt

For the realization of their dream of the first home, whether you rent with or buy, and how to achieve the maximum return in Frankfurt, you will learn in our article about realtors in Frankfurt.

• Real estate agent in Frankfurt