Munich and Hamburg ranked Europe's best property investments

Munich and Hamburg top the list of places to invest in real estate in Europe, according to a new study released this week.

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Largely unscathed by the subprime lending crisis and the recent global bubble for property prices, Germany’s real estate market is now considered a safe haven for investors by professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.

“The German real estate market is becoming more attractive amid the crisis,” said the firm’s German property expert Helmut Trappmann in a statement. “The risks here are much lower and offer respectable returns compared to the regions that boomed over the past few years. The conservative price developments in recent years are now benefiting us.”

Surveying some 500 property sector experts, Munich and Hamburg were ranked first and second for potential return on real estate investment and Munich was also the European city considered to have the lowest risk for buying property. Hamburg came in third, being edged out by Zurich for second place.

Overall, four German cities made the top ten for places to invest in property in Europe – with Berlin and Frankfurt joining Munich and Hamburg. The study said Germany was considered “less volatile with more long-term investors” in real estate.

Those surveyed ranked Munich the best place to invest due to an increase in government spending, which could spark future economic growth, declining unemployment, a growing population and increased consumer spending power. Munich topped the risk table because the Bavarian capital has a diverse economic base which supposedly mitigates risky investments.