Commission-free Apartments to buy in Nordrhein-Westfalen

Rather expensive Rhineland, rather inexpensive "Ruhrpott": In NRW, diversity is the motto.

The most densely populated state in the Federal Republic also has a price structure for condominiums of all types and sizes that reflects its heterogeneous population and different landscapes. From very good locations in Düsseldorf (Altstadt, Stockum, Oberkassel, Unterbilk, Grafenberg, Herdt, Goltzheim) and Cologne (Altstadt & Neustadt-Süd and Nord, Müngersdorf, Rodenkirchen, Bayenthal, Braunsfeld, Fühlingen, Marienburg, Riehl) around approx. 4,200 to 7,000 euros/m² or approx. 3,500 to 5,300 euros/m² over good and medium-quality locations such as in Essen (Kettwig, Werden, Bredeney, Fischlaken, Haarzopf, Heidhausen) for approx. 2,500 to 3,500 euros/m² to simple locations in cities such as Gelsenkirchen, Castrop-Rauxel, Mönchengladbach, Bochum, Bottrop, Krefeld, Dortmund, Duisburg, Hagen, Herne, Wuppertal and Solingen with prices starting at approx. 600 to 800 euros/m², there is an extremely wide price range between the Rhine and the Ruhr for apartment purchases. As a rough regional rule of thumb, the south of the Rhineland is usually significantly more expensive than the densely populated center, while the Münsterland region in the north is similarly expensive. In eastern Westphalia, the cities of Bielefeld, Gütersloh, Paderborn and Herford have recorded price increases over the last three years, some of which have been significant, but which vary widely. However, there as well as in the greater Aachen area, there are still many residential neighborhoods with affordable prices of between 1,500 and under 3,000 euros/m².

From very simple to highly modern: Large housing estates, climate protection estates and solar estates

When selecting and buying an apartment in North Rhine-Westphalia, one should pay even more attention than elsewhere to its exact location and furnishings, the year of construction and the respective renovation and modernization history. However, many of the large housing estates from the 1950s to the 1970s, such as Bielefeld-Sennestadt, Dortmund-Clarenberg or Cologne-Chorweiler, which were very quickly and urgently needed at the time, have been considerably and effectively improved over time by urban planning with regard to their quality of life. The model settlements that have been ambitiously and sustainably advanced in some regions of NRW, some of which were built on renaturalized former production areas, are also very modern. Under the project name "100 Climate Protection Housing Estates in North Rhine-Westphalia", such housing estates, mostly built or refurbished to passive house standards, including photovoltaic and ventilation systems with heat recovery, already exist in Kleve, Mönchengladbach, Düsseldorf, Gelsenkirchen, Münster, Bielefeld and Bonn-Bad Godesberg. In Troisdorf, Hennef, Siegen, Monheim, Wuppertal, Dortmund, Waltrop, Geldern, Dinslaken, Senden, Ascheberg and Greven, new housing estates are already being built to the same standard. Also in demand, because they are forward-looking, are the apartments in the so-called "solar housing estates" in the Gelsenkirchen districts of Bismarck, Lindenhof and Schaffrath, where various measures such as insulation and district heating have reduced CO2 emissions by over 50%.

Important cost factors in NRW: Old or new building, urban location, universities

The purchase price for existing or newly built apartments in North Rhine-Westphalia varies just as much as the purchase price, which is mostly staggered according to precise locations within the state. On average, used condominiums cost almost 100,000 euros, which is less than half the price of a comparable new-build variant. Otherwise, the trend of strong demand for inner-city and high-quality apartments in good locations, which can be observed nationwide and is continuing, is also confirmed in NRW. Although the average price per square meter is still well below that of Germany as a whole, there was a sharp rise in prices for condominiums averaging 9 percent across the state between 2012 and 2013 alone. The major cities and, among them, the university locations of Cologne, Düsseldorf, Münster and Bonn were particularly affected by rising prices due to high demand. However, condominiums can still be found at reasonable prices in the east and northeast of North Rhine-Westphalia, for example. In and around cities/towns such as Iserlohn, Lüdenscheid, Meinerzhagen and Menden in the Märkischer Kreis district, Bad Salzuflen, Detmold and Lemgo in the Lippe district, Attendorn, Lennestadt and Olpe in the Olpe district or Arnsberg, Meschede, Schmallenberg and Sundern in the Hochsauerlandkreis district, there are often still surprisingly good offers for condominiums.

Short facts Buy an apartment in North Rhine-Westphalia:

- The Rhineland is more expensive than the Ruhr, Münsterland or East Westphalia
- The Aachen metropolitan area is a favorable alternative for the south of the state
- Many of the state's older large housing estates have been extensively refurbished
- The new climate protection and solar housing estates in NRW are becoming increasingly sought-after
- Owner-occupied apartments from the existing stock are often significantly cheaper than newly built
- Prices are rising in the university towns, while the Sauerland is still quite affordable