Investors may say hello to Berlin

German Investments:A development of one, two and three-bedroom apartments in the west of Berlin is being offered to Irish investors by Simple Overseas Properties, the Irish-owned property investment group.

The refurbished apartments are owned by the Berlin city government, and range in price from €85,000 to €120,000.

They come with a 10-year rental income guaranteed by the city's government, according to Simple Overseas managing director Karl Morris.

It will guarantee €6 per square metre per month (after all costs). The properties - which offer an annual yield on a €100,000 unit of approximately 4.5 per cent - would suit a buyer who wants a safe investment, says Mr Morris.

If, for example, an investor put down 30 per cent of a €100,000 apartment, rent would cover mortgage repayments. Properties are freehold and after 10 years, are exempt from capital gains tax in Germany.

Germany, with strict landlord/tenant laws and rent controls and falling property prices, has not been an obvious place for Irish investors to buy.

But with a new government, its economy is set to stage a recovery. And as for property prices, Mr Morris believes "They can't go any lower." The apartments are in the Spandau and Tegel areas in the north west of Berlin.

Simple Overseas is also selling 66 apartments in a development called Adriatic View in Montenegro.

The apartments, costing from from €99,000, are being built in the Budva resort which is two minutes' from the beachfront, according to Simple, and 45 minutes' from the airport in Dubrovnik.

Both developments are on show at two exhibitions in Dublin this weekend, one in Stillorgan, the other in Malahide.