Stable returns: sales growth for Deka's retail property funds

• Net sales of around €90 million in 2025 for open-ended property funds for private investors / €240 million sales growth in January 2026
• Returns after costs for large, established open-ended real estate funds remain above two per cent
• Deka Immobilien takes advantage of market situation for acquisitions: transaction volume of €2.7 billion in 2025

 
Frankfurt, 09.02.2026

In 2025, more private investors bought shares in Deka's open-ended real estate funds than they redeemed. The real estate funds directly managed by Deka for private customers recorded net sales of around €90 million in 2025. One significant factor contributing to this is the exceptional stability the funds have demonstrated, even under the prevailing market conditions. For institutional real estate funds, which are characterized by smaller volumes, the decline in net sales was less pronounced than in the previous year. This contributed to an overall positive net sales performance of approximately €20 million in the real estate business division. This clearly sets Deka apart from the market environment in Germany. Net sales also remained positive at the start of 2026. In January, net sales of open-ended real estate funds for private investors amounted to around €240 million. In January, net sales are traditionally also influenced by reinvestments. Last year, returns after costs for Deka's large, established open-ended real estate funds ranged between 2 and 2.3 per cent, well above the industry average.
 
“The positive net sales in 2025 and the high reinvestment rate in January 2026 prove that investors have confidence in Deka's fund management. And rightly so, because Deka's funds have always generated positive returns to date. For 2026, we expect performance of between 2 and 3 per cent for the large, established funds. This proves that if open-ended real estate funds are structured and managed properly, they are indispensable for a diversified investment portfolio," says Dr Matthias Danne, Deka Board of Management member with responsibility for asset management.
 
Most active buyer in open-ended real estate funds
Thanks to high stability and constant inflows, Deka's fund managers were among the very few in the industry able to take advantage of the current market conditions to actively make acquisitions. In addition to 20 sales, all of which were made at a profit, totalling €1.53 billion, 12 purchases were also made, amounting to €1.14 billion. In the summer, WestInvest InterSelect acquired a prime office property in Ireland, and Deka-ImmobilienEuropa expanded its portfolio with office properties in the city centres of Paris and Cologne. Deka Immobilien has already made its first purchases in 2026. With the purchase of the ‘Tour Deloitte’ office tower in Montréal, Deka-ImmobilienMetropolen secured one of the three best office properties in downtown Montréal. WestInvest InterSelect expanded its portfolio with a prime hotel property in Vienna.
 
“Our funds benefit from our consistent cash flow management, our focus on properties in prime locations and our decision not to engage in project development. This enables them to take advantage of investment opportunities arising in the current market environment. At present, Deka is the most active buyer among German providers of open-ended real estate funds. We are systematically leveraging  the current market situation to further enhance the quality of our funds," adds Danne.
 
Asset management volume at €55.2 billion
The asset management volume of the business segment amounted to €55.2 billion at the end of 2025. Deka's directly managed open-ended real estate funds for private investors recorded net sales of around €90 million in 2025. In the case of real estate funds for institutional investors, the decline in net sales fell to around minus €105 million (previous year: minus €330 million). Deka's retail funds have a combined fund volume of around €40 billion.
 
Occupancy rate at around 94 per cent
Letting performance remained at a high level in 2025 thanks to the conclusion of rental agreements with a net annual rental volume of €420 million. The occupancy rate for the overall portfolio stood at 93.7 per cent at the end of 2025, supporting the stable performance of the funds.

DekaBank is the securities services provider of the German Savings Banks Finance Group (Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe). Together with its subsidiaries it forms Deka Group. With total customer assets of more than EUR 440 billion (as at 30/09/2025) and 5.9 million securities accounts, DekaBank is one of the largest securities services providers and real estate asset managers in Germany. It provides private and institutional investors with access to a wide range of investment products and services. DekaBank is firmly anchored in the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe (Savings Banks Finance Group) and tailors its product portfolio to the requirements of its owners and sales partners in the securities business.

The Deka Group's global real estate expertise is pooled in its Real Estate Division. The management companies, Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH and WestInvest Gesellschaft für Investmentfonds mbH provide management and support for EUR 50 billion (as at 31/12/2025) in real estate assets.