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Business
商业报道
German property firms
德国房地产公司
Safe as houses
非常安全
The residential-property business is growing and consolidating
住宅地产商业正在扩大合并
THE British are obsessed with property ownership, but Germans, by and large, are happy to rent.
英国人对房地产所有权很痴迷，但是德国人一般更喜欢租房子。
The European Union's biggest economy also has its lowest rate of owner-occupied housing, and the highest proportion of people living in homes rented at market prices.
欧洲最大的国家对业主自住房屋有着最低的利率，以及最高比例居住以市价出租房屋的人口。
That is why rising rents, not rising house prices, were a theme in Germany's recent elections, with even the conservative Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union showing sympathy for some kind of rent brake.
这也是为什么提高租金而不提高房屋价格会成为近期德国选举的一个主题，甚至是保守的基督教民主联盟和基督教社会联盟都对出租阻碍表示同情。
Germany's renter-heavy housing market has unique historical and cultural causes—and interesting consequences.
德国以租客为主的房地产市场有其独特的历史和文化的原因—以及有趣的结果。
Much housing has been owned by state or city governments, or public-sector firms like Deutsche Bahn, the national railway.
许多房地产是国家或者市政府所有，或者是像国营铁路德国联邦铁路那种公共部门公司所有。
Germans have usually put their savings into banks rather than homes.
德国人通常都把他们的积蓄存在银行而非花在房屋上。
But the gradual privatisation of Germany's housing stock has led to the emergence of unusual beasts: big, stockmarket-listed property firms which mainly rent out homes, not offices or shops.
但是德国住宅逐渐私有化引来了不同寻常的野兽：主营住房出租而非办公室或店铺出租的大型上市地产公司。
Two of the biggest will soon become one: this week GSW Immobilien said it had agreed to a takeover by Deutsche Wohnen.
德国两家最大的地产公司不久将会合并：这周GSW Immobilien表示该公司已经同意由Deutsche Wohnen公司来接管。
If the deal goes ahead, the combined company will be one of Europe's largest listed property firms, along with Deutsche Annington, another German residential landlord, which floated on the stockmarket in July.
如果这项交易顺利进行，这个合并的公司将会成为欧洲最大的上市房地产公司，接着是7月份上市的另一家德国住房地产公司Deutsche Anniington。
Most of Europe's other property giants deal mainly in commercial premises.
欧洲大多数其他房地产巨头主营商业楼宇。
The two merging firms have big portfolios in Berlin.
两家即将合并的公司在柏林有很大的投资。
Of their combined 150,000 flats, about 108,000 are in the capital region.
在他们合并的15万套公寓中有10.8万套位于首都圈地区。
So in contrast to many mergers, there is a good chance of achieving the promised cost savings.
因此与许多合并公司相比，还有很大获得预期成本节约的机会。
For the deal to go through, 75% of GSW's shareholders must accept it.
对于即将进行的这项交易，Gsw75%的股东一定会接受。
Many may conclude that it is a good time to sell: rents in Berlin, having risen sharply, are likely to be flat in the near future, reckons David Eckel, a consultant and lobbyist for housing developers and owners.
许多人推断这是卖出的最好时机：房地产开发商和业主顾问及说客David Eckel认为，急剧上升的柏林房屋租金在不就的将来很可能趋于平缓。
A bigger company should be better equipped to thrive in a heavily regulated business.
大型公司要更好地准备以便能在严重受管制的商业中蓬勃发展。
For example, the government has many requirements for the energy efficiency of new buildings, something smaller landlords have a harder time coping with.
例如，政府对新建筑的能源效率提出了许多要求，这是小业主很难处理的问题。
The larger German companies should also find it easier to negotiate deals on big and prominent development sites, says Yolande Barnes of Savills, a London-based property consultant.
总部在伦敦的房地产顾问第一太平戴维斯的Yolande Barnes说，大型德国公司也会发现在大型有前途的开发项目上，他们更容易面谈协商。
Philip Charls of the European Public Real-Estate Association notes that many Germans are queasy about the idea of treating housing as a speculative investment.
欧洲公共房地产协会的Philip Charls表明，许多德国人对于把房地产作为投机投资的想法很反感。
But the current low interest rates, which the local financial press moans about daily, are driving Germans to seek creative ways to earn returns.
但是当地财经媒体每天抱怨当前低利率驱使德国人去寻找新的方法来获得回报。
Bigger housing companies, like the merged Deutsche Wohnen-GSW, should provide liquid investments, offering attractive and fairly predictable yields.
大型房地产公司，如合并的Deutsche Wohnen—GSW，应该提供引人而又预计有利可图的短期投资。
However, in the financial crisis many Germans lost money on failed savings vehicles which, without them realising it, had invested in commercial property.
然而，在金融危机中，许多德国人在失败的储蓄产品中亏了本，把钱投资在了商业地产上。
Publicly quoted firms that rent flats to families should be a safer investment.
面向家庭出租房屋的上市公司可能是一种更安全的投资。
But those who got burned on property last time may take some convincing.
但是那些刚在房地产事业上遭受损失的人可能要有一些有说服力的证据。
