And while the local government says Berlin has sufficient space to build over 100,000 apartments, there is no sign the housing crisis gripping the city will ease.
But as Europe's largest economy teeters near recession, economists warn that high rents will feed inflation and reduce household consumption.
In Berlin, local opposition has frustrated plans to build, while regulation creates a two-tier rental market that is cheap for some long-term tenants and expensive for new renters.
Rising property demand saw private companies develop luxury apartments that offered a higher yield - in part, Buch said, because government permissioning for more affordable housing projects was so slow.
OPPOSITIONSome building projects have since faced local opposition while a recent attempt to curb rent increases backfired.
Persons:
Lisi Niesner, Rolf Buch, Buch, you've, Konstantin Kholodilin, Marwa, Monika Neugebauer, Goldman Sachs, Neugebauer, Gesa Crockford, Martin Pallgen, Anna Hohnrath, Hohnrath, Matthias Inverardi, Matthias Williams, Catherine Evans
Organizations:
Berlin, REUTERS, Rights, Vonovia, Reuters, DIVISION, International Union of Tenants, European, West, Foreigners, Thomson
Locations:
Berlin, Germany, San Francisco, California, City, Tempelhof, Valencia, Spain