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Areas Overview

Tempelhof-Schöneberg.

The borough was formed by merging the former boroughs of Tempelhof and Schöneberg in the 2001 re-organisation. The borough is located due south of the city centre and stretches from Mitte in the north to the boundary with Brandenburg in the south. The borough was within West Berlin during the partition of the city. Unlike other boroughs that stretch out from the city centre to the countryside Tempelhof-Schöneberg is mostly built up even out to the city limits at Lichtenrade.

The borough is on the main north south train line into Berlin and a sub-borough, Marienfelde, has been the location for part of the development of the modern train services of Germany. In 1900 it was the location for the development of high speed electrical locomotives using overhead lines, speeds of over 200 km/h were achieved on this test track. This is a mixed industrial and residential area with a number of important industries, including a Daimler assembly plant.

Tempelhof International Airport is located within the borough, it is one of three international airports that existed during partition and was in the Western Section. Following re-unification plans were made to rationalise the airport resources of the city with Tempelhof put down for closure on the 31st of October 2008. Berlin-Schoenefeld Airport is to be extended and established as the principle airport for Berlin, it will be renamed as Berlin Brandenburg International BBI.

The districts of Tempelhof-Schöneberg are: Schöneberg, Friedenau, Tempelhof, Mariendorf, Marienfelde and Lichtenrade.

Schöneberg (pop 116,000) in the north of the borough borders Mitte and is very much a city centre district. The original area is a very old district and was incorporated into Berlin in the 19th century, the population grew rapidly from 15,000 to nearly 100,000 between 1880 and 1900. Neighbourhoods in the district include, "Rote Insel" (Red Island) a traditionally left wing area which is dominated by five storey residential buildings dating from 1890 to 1920.

"Bayerisches Viertel" (The Bavarian Quarter) between City Hall and the Wittenbergplatz and which also included the area known as "Jewish Switzerland". This area of Schöneberg saw an intake of many upper middle-class Jews fleeing the pogroms in eastern Europe between 1885 and 1925, the area became known as "Jewish Switzerland". Signs on display in the district commemorate the discrimination against the Jews of the area in the 1930's.

The sub-district of Lindenhof is a large commercial and retail area with small and medium-sized enterprises, hotels and restaurants.

There is a major retail area around Wittenberg Platz and Tauentzienstraße. The KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens) store on Tauentzienstraße is one of the largest department stores in Europe, the store has survived two wars and is a favourite destination for shoppers from around the world as well as Berlin. The Nollendorfplatz area has numerous pubs, bars and shops, which are mostly linked to the gay community.

Friedenau, (pop 28,000) is a small district that juts out in between Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf and Steglitz-Zehlendorf. The dominant building structures in Friedenau dates from around 1900. There is a uniformity of structure in the district and where buildings were destroyed during the war the gap site's have been rebuilt to maintain this character. The traditional Berlin tenement is a common feature of the properties in Friedenau. There are still some properties remaining that pre-date this period, they vary from "Town Houses" built in 1870's and some modest, mostly single family houses, which were built later. Friedenau residents typically include students, academics, artists and young families looking for a relaxed environment combined with a big city feel.

Tempelhof (pop 55,000) know mostly for the airport which carries its name. This was the primary West Berlin airport during partition, until the opening of Tegel Airport in the north of the western sector, Tempelhof served as the main airport for West Berliner's. Tempelhof remained in operation with a limited service until its recent closure following the adoption of the plan for the new international airport Brandenburg Berlin International (BBI) at Schoenefeld. As yet there has been no definite plan for the re-development of the large inner city area that the old airport occupies. The Teltowkanal, completed in 1906, contributed significantly to the economic development of Tempelhof, the area now has a range of industrial developments.

Mariendorf (pop 50,000) is a district in the middle of the borough and includes densely built multi-family residential buildings in the northern part of the district.

In the southern part of the district there is a combination of single family houses, two and four family residential buildings and some modern developments from the 1970's. There are some commercial and industrial areas in Mariendorf.

The port in Mariendorf on the Teltowkanal was originally used as a transfer point for coal or fuel oil for the now closed gasworks.

Marienfelde (pop 30,000) was originally a small village with fewer than 200 residents which grew steadily until the second world war when the population reached 10,000. The residential developments were mostly located to the west of the new railway station while industrial development was confined to the east of the district, this layout is still evident in current maps of the district. The district suffered badly during the second world war and the population declined significantly. After the Second World War, family houses and rental apartments were built in the 1950s and 1960s and the population grew to around 18,000 by 1970. Developments in the district in the 1970's were characterised by high-rise residential buildings at Waldsassener Str. and an industrial area at Nahmitzer dam / Motzener road. The population peaked at more than 33,000 in 1989. Recently an EU funded Business park was established which now has over 200 companies with approximately 5000 employees employed there.

Lichtenrade (pop 50,000) lies on the periphery of the city however it is almost completely built-up with concentrated residential developments. In the 1970s the high-rise settlement "John-Locke-Siedlung" was developed here.

A detailed discussion on the range of properties in Berlin and issues relating to renovation and re-development is available in the Property Types section.

What's happening in Tempelhof-Schöneberg?

The population density of Tempelhof - Schöneberg. at approximately 6,300/km2, indicates how heavily built up the borough is comparing more with a city centre borough like Neukolln (6,800/km2) than a borough that stretches out to the city limits like Pankow (3,500/km2).

The borough has a relative low residential vacancy rate which emphasizes the consistency of the property market within the borough. There is a very low rate of construction of new residential units in the borough, less than 8,000 of the 185,000 properties in the borough have been built since 1991 most of which were built in the early years after reunification. Current new built in the borough is almost stationary however redevelopment of the airport grounds could alter this.

The area Neu-Tempelhof is worth mentioning for its unique position in the property market of Berlin due to its grand townhouses. These offer individual family residences with private space that does not exist anywhere else in Berlin. Typical prices for this type of property in Berlin are less than 50% of that in Munich (500 Euro/m² versus 1050 Euro/m²). With a growing affluent sector in the property market and limited supply of property close to the city centre this type of property will see increased demand and prices. The imminent closure of the nearby Tempelhof Airport should act as a further spur to price increases in the area as long as there are no disastrous development planning decisions which does not appear likely.

Recently GSW acquired a portfolio of 70,000 m2 (mix of 40 commercial and 860 residential units) in Lichtenrade for 45MEuro.

This purchase with a vacancy rate of 25% which GSW has predict they will fill through "active tenancy management" resulting in a positive uplift in the portfolio value. GSW, which was formally owned by the state of Berlin, manages over 60,000 properties in Berlin.

While Lichtenrade has some issues relating to the quality of its buildings and their environment however good access to the city centre is a positive influence on its development.

Future Trends

(Anecdotal based rather than data based).Tempelhof - Schöneberg is probably undergoing the highest combined growth rate for rents and sales prices of any of the boroughs of Berlin. With current rates of increases close to their projected highest levels it is anticipated that the current rate of increase may peak in the short term and drift down to more sustainable growth rates in the medium term. Recent buyers into the area are liable to be those that achieve the best capital growth rates.

The growing popularity of the southern districts of Berlin remains a growth driver in the borough and should help underpin future growth rates in Tempelhof - Schöneberg.

Redevelopment of the Tempelhof airport, together with Tegel airport, is one of the major re-development opportunities in Berlin. Tempelhof in particular has to cater for the "re-use" of the main Tempelhof Terminal Building which at 1.2 kilometres long and comprising somewhere in the region of 10,000 rooms is one of the largest buildings in Europe. The removal of flight pathways over the area will dramatically reduce the impact of aircraft noise in areas currently under flight paths into and out of the airport. Obviously a positive development of the airport space should add to the improvements in the surrounding areas.

With an "Owner Occupancy" rate of nearly 15% in the borough it is only slightly higher than the average rate for Berlin. This level of owner occupancy would count against property prices achieving any premium in their value beyond the typical calculated rental yield valuations for equivalent properties within the city.

For more information on "Owner Occupancy Rates" and other general analysis data visit our Graphs of Economic Performance page.

Landmarks and Attractions

The Trabrennbahn Mariendorf, a famous horse race track. Ufa Fabrik, an international cultural center. The Ullsteinhaus, a former newspaper and printing plant which is now used as an exhibition and office space. The Volkspark Mariendorf, this contains sports grounds including the Volksparkstadium Berlin" Toboggan track and swimming pool.

The Refugee Processing Center, this is a very important historical link for emigrants from the East to the West. This is where over 1.5 million refugees fleeing communism in East Germany via West Berlin were received for processing before permanent re-settlement in the West. A museum was established in the grounds of the centre which was classified as a museum of national significance in 1998.

Headquarters of RIAS Berlin (Radio in the American Sector) from 1946–1993. Headquarters of Deutschland Radio Berlin from 1994, renamed Deutschlandradio Kultur in 2005.

Headquarters of BVG (Berlin Public Transportation Company), the Kleistpark, laid out in 1656 by the Großer Kurfürst as a nursery later becoming the Botanischer Garten (this was the site of the Allied Control Council in post-war Berlin) and the Pallasstrasse air-raid shelter.

The area around Nollendorfplatz was a main center of Gay-life in pre-war Berlin and was the background location for the events portrayed in the film "Cabaret".

Schoeneberg City Hall, Headquarters of the Allied Control Council and following the political division of Berlin until reunification in 1990 it was the political heart of West Berlin. The city hall was the home of Parliament (House of Representatives) and the government (Senate) of West Berlin.

Neighbourhood Areas of Tempelhof-Schöneberg

Schöneberg, Friedenau, Tempelhof, Mariendorf, Marienfelde and Lichtenrade.