Glamorous Grandeur at Grand Ouest

With a growing population and a vibrant financial district – Frankfurt is enjoying a renaissance with exciting new residential opportunities springing up to meet investor demand – including the elegant Grand Ouest. By Stephen Penn

Visitors to Frankfurt don’t have to look too far for signs of its booming property market, with nearly every quarter of Germany’s affluent financial capital brimming with new, high-end real estate developments.

From soaring luxury condominium towers to fully renovated pre-war buildings, the prices and upscale amenities within the city; now rival top-tier districts in London and Paris.

From the seat of the imperial palace to the banking metropolis of Europe — Frankfurt am Main has garnered a name for itself as the ‘smallest metropolis in the world’. The word small may soon be a misnomer, however, as the city is witnessing a population surge as well as a construction boom.

This growth is thanks in part to international buyers who are putting down roots in the city – which is home to numerous international banks, financial institutions and the country’s stock exchange – making investment prospects in the city stronger.

One landmark development in Westend drawing investor interest is Grand Ouest, the dramatic conversion of a historic former Imperial Post Office - built by the last German Emperor - into 164 luxury apartments.

The five floor structure will boast 1 to 3 room apartments as well as 14 penthouses with floor-to-ceiling windows and access to a roof terrace. The class A-location offers a unique view of the skyline and the result is a symbiosis of life in an old manorial building with all the advantages of a contemporary penthouse.

“The Grand Ouest features the highest entrance portal in the city,” says Gregor Fuchshuber, the architect commissioned for the redesign. “Its neo-baroque façade, extremely spacious entrance hall and architecturally attractive additions to the courtyard arcades, all stand for the extraordinary quality of this property.”

The building – set for completion in 2020 – is already creating a significant buzz internationally with a number of HNW investors in the global financial world snapping up apartments. In fact, 50% of available stock has already been notarised, with 20% on reserve.

“International buyers are particularly interested in the expansive ‘Bel Etage’, which in this historic building is the equivalent of a penthouse in a high-rise residential building,” adds Jürgen Meehsen, Managing Director of ESCON GmbH, the agency exclusively responsible for sales. “Location, view and architecture are what we off er here, and half our buyers are from the Asia-Pacific area and Europe.”

To cater to this growing international buyer pool, ESCON has three officers and a multilingual staff providing advice in French, English, Arabic, Russian and Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese).

This dedication to clients – teamed with the exciting prospect of living in such opulence in the fastest growing city in Europe - is already paying dividends. The increase in value of the apartments has already exceeded 10% in the last 18 months before completion.

“Frankfurt is an established financial centre and Germany’s fastest-growing metropolis and has an above-average per capita purchasing power,” says Ron Hillmann, real estate expert and digitisation strategist for project marketing at allmyhomes.com, partner of ESCON. “The rapid sales take-up at Grand Quest demonstrates how great demand is for upscale living space in the metropolis on the Main.”

To find out more about Grand Ouest, visit www.frankfurtgrandouest.com/