Living Moments - N°1 Edition 2013

Mr Fabi, with the Private Residences company group, you are among the very few innovative companies in this field which continues to set new standards again and again. Can you explain to us your very special company philosophy in detail? As a specialised real estate consultant and broker for premium and luxury properties in one of the most beautiful places in Europe, it has always been my personal concern to fundamen- tally change the often negative image of this branch. This however, is only possible by extraordinary accomplishments, sustainable and competent advice, as well as an excellent service for our customers which goes far beyond the professional acquisition or sale of high-end real estate. Human empathy, commitment, discretion and high social and subject-specific competency create the fundamentals of our customer relations, which sometimes mature over several months and years and, quite often, they lead to true friendships. How do you evaluate the current trend of the European property markets – particularly compared to international properties? Europe’s real estate markets are still in a process of change due to the influences of the crises effects, as well as fiscal and political developments in Europe. Although “property” has regained considerable attention and value as a stable and reliable capital investment, at the present time you must differ-entiate very carefully and look more closely at individual markets, as well as their current trends.The real estate markets in southern European are currently disadvantaged due to the debt crises in the individual states and the resulting dependency on EU bail- out packages for the stabilisation of the economy and the banks, and they are often an acute victim of a too negative view. Of course, the profit-propelled building projects of the last few years have led to housing bubbles ,owing to lack of realistic demand, unrealistic pricing and individual financial feasibility in many places, such as on the Spanish mainland in particular. Portugal, Italy and France are in very dire straits due to political and financial mismanagement and they are being confronted with a radical reluctance to invest by the targeted buyer groups. Germany has been a booming real estate market since the beginning of the Euro and debt crisis, due especially to its leading role in the EuropeanUnion.Formany years,German cities such as Hamburg, Munich and Berlin were considerably undervalued. Today, they present a completely changed picture, with substantial price increases resulting from a noticeably high international demand for residential, commercial and investment properties. The international comparison shows how close political and economic trends and the position of the individual countries are, as well as how they have direct effects on the value and perception of the real estate markets, and how strong economically sound countries such as Germany, Austria and Switzerland can hold their own by maintaining very stable value against this backdrop. 7TaTYR 8ZXPY_^ Edition 1 · 2013 162 Experten im Interview Experts Interviews