IN Brief:
- Berlin logistics and industrial property take-up reached approximately 211,000 sq m in H1 2026.
- Warehouse space accounted for about 91% of total take-up, with logistics and distribution companies leading demand.
- Prime rents remained stable at €10.50 per sq m, while average rents held at €8.10 per sq m.
REALOGIS has reported approximately 211,000 sq m of take-up in Berlin’s logistics and industrial property market during the first half of 2026, with warehouse space accounting for the overwhelming majority of occupier activity.
Warehouse space represented around 192,500 sq m, or 91% of total take-up, while office and mezzanine areas made up the remainder. Warehouse take-up increased by 21% year on year, although it remained below the five-year average, showing a market with renewed momentum rather than overheated expansion.
The five largest transactions accounted for almost half of total activity. Major deals included JD Logistics at 41,430 sq m, ASML at 27,000 sq m, acut fulfillment at 11,520 sq m, Capital Baustoffe at 11,400 sq m, and FST Industrie at 11,200 sq m. Logistics and distribution companies generated the largest share of demand, followed by retail and wholesale occupiers, manufacturers, and other industrial users.
Rents remained steady during the period. Prime rents held at €10.50 per sq m, while average rents stayed at €8.10 per sq m. Both remained above their five-year averages, indicating that softer macroeconomic conditions have not produced a sharp reset for well-located industrial and logistics space.
The structure of demand also shows how occupiers are using the Berlin market. Existing buildings accounted for 110,400 sq m, or 52% of take-up, while new developments on brownfield sites represented 91,200 sq m. Greenfield development contributed only 9,400 sq m, pointing to tighter land-use patterns and a more selective development environment.
Berlin reflects a wider European logistics property pattern. Occupiers continue to require modern distribution capacity, but financing conditions, planning constraints, construction costs, and uneven consumer demand have made speculative development more cautious. Demand has not disappeared; it has become more concentrated around buildings and locations that solve specific network problems.
Chancerygate’s move into Germany through a new Berlin office sits neatly within that market backdrop. Urban and regional industrial space remains attractive where it can support last-mile distribution, manufacturing services, trade supply, and occupiers seeking flexible buildings close to dense demand centres.
The JD Logistics transaction is especially notable because Chinese retail, ecommerce, and logistics groups are widening their European physical networks. Berlin offers access to a large consumer market, eastern German distribution routes, and links into Central Europe. Cross-border ecommerce and platform retail continue to influence warehouse demand across major European urban regions.
ASML’s presence in the deal list also shows that demand is not limited to ecommerce. Semiconductor equipment, manufacturing support, technical distribution, and industrial servicing require secure and capable space. These users often need more than generic storage, with requirements around engineering access, reliability, handling quality, and service continuity.
Berlin’s urban area accounted for the largest share of take-up, with southern Berlin particularly active. Proximity remains a valuable asset in logistics property because distance adds cost through transport time, driver availability, failed delivery risk, and weaker service coverage. Peripheral space may offer lower rent, but it can erode performance if it sits too far from customers, labour, or transport corridors.
The big-box segment remained dominant, accounting for 143,900 sq m, or 68% of take-up. That points to continuing scale requirements, while smaller and medium-sized units still provide essential capacity for business parks, local distribution, and specialist industrial operations. A resilient logistics market needs both the network backbone of large sites and the local depth of smaller nodes.
UK property activity has been following a similar logic, with Logicor’s Bardon scheme advancing around power, location, and modern specification. Across Europe, occupiers are no longer buying square metres alone. They are buying energy profile, site performance, automation potential, labour access, and the ability to keep goods moving with fewer operational compromises.
Berlin’s first-half figures show a market that is measured rather than weak. Take-up has improved, rents remain firm, and large occupiers are still committing. The constraint is quality and location, not basic demand, and buildings that combine modern specification with urban access will continue to set the pace.
