Get out of the big city

More and more people are drawn to the countryside

"The market has turned," real estate expert Georg Pauling lets us know. Pauling works for VON POLL IMMOBILIEN, one of the largest real estate brokerage companies in Europe. Already for many years he leads the VON POLL IMMOBILIEN store in the county Bentheim. "In the peak phase until the end of 2021, we recorded a pure seller's market. There was very little supply. Properties did not linger long on the market, but were sold quickly and at top prices. In addition, the prospective buyers often outbid each other after the property inspections," recalls Georg Pauling.

With the onset of the pandemic, young families from the big cities in particular - both from the Netherlands and from the major cities within a radius of 200 kilometers - were looking for a new home in the county of Bentheim. According to a study by the Berlin Institute for Population and Development and the Wüstenrot Foundation, this trend is continuing. The shift toward more flexible working time models also plays a significant role here, as employees are no longer so strongly tied to the location of their workplace. Today, young families are often looking for a property with an extra room or a small granny apartment for home office work.

In principle, the decision to live in the country has a variety of reasons. At the top of the list are a quiet and relaxed life in nature, less traffic and better air, a good infrastructure and larger outdoor spaces at the properties. Many families also favor cultural city life, but they can no longer afford - compared to the country - the higher real estate prices of larger cities or surrounding regions.

The migration statistics of the federal and state statistical offices also confirm that immigration to larger small towns and medium-sized cities has increased by around 80 percent. Fifteen years ago, the figure was just over 40 percent. This makes Grafschaft Bentheim one of the winners.

"This development holds great potential for prospective buyers in our region. And this is precisely where we at VON POLL IMMOBILIEN come in. With an international network of over 350 stores, we reach search customers in all major cities in Europe," says real estate expert Georg Pauling. He continues: "These prospective buyers are not specifically looking in Nordhorn, Bad Bentheim or Emlichheim. They put the radius for the real estate search up to 200 kilometers around their place of work. Thus with a prospective buyer not only Nordhorn or Schüttorf are in the focus, but also Ahaus, Bergisch Gladbach and Plettenberg. The advantages of working with a brokerage company active throughout Germany are therefore obvious and also guarantee a faster and more successful property sale."

Are you also looking for a new home in the region around Grafschaft Bentheim? Georg Pauling and his VON POLL IMMOBILIEN team look forward to hearing from you.