Frankfurt house prices spike as city prepares for British bankers

Frankfurt may not be every City worker’s dream destination but enough bankers are preparing to head there to spark a spike in house prices.

Suggestions that up to 10,000 bankers may move to Germany’s financial centre as a result of Brexit has led to a 10.7% increase in apartment prices in the second half of last year, according to estate agents Jones Lang LaSalle. Prices have leapt by 99% since 2004.

Although Frankfurt is much cheaper than London for housing, agents fear Brexit will continue to push prices in the small German city higher.

“Any additional population, even if it’s just a few thousand bank employees, will continue to drive buying prices in Frankfurt,” Julius Stinauer, associate director at JLL, told Bloomberg.

JLL says the average asking price for apartments in Frankfurt last year was €4830 (£4280) per square metre. Luxury properties are selling at €7500 per square metre. In contrast, the average selling price of a City of London apartment was €11,952 per square metre. Prices in London have dropped 2.6% compared with 2016.