Management summary
The aim of the annual commercial space monitoring for the Hannover Region as a business location is to record, process and evaluate commercial space turnover and the supply of available and planned commercial and industrial space.
The monitoring is carried out in close cooperation with the cities and municipalities of the Hannover Region.
In addition to ongoing cooperation in the area of settlement management, "guidelines for commercial space development" are also drawn up at regular intervals together with regional planning and the municipalities in the sense of a framework for action for medium-term regional space development.
Only through joint, municipally coordinated land development can a market-driven supply of land be mobilized in the long term. The increasing shortage of land in recent years makes it clear that even more attention must be paid to the use of brownfield and internal development potential.
To this end, the regional assembly adopted a Regional Commercial Investment Program (REGIP) back in 2019. The aim of the REGIP is not only to support municipalities in planning and developing additional commercial space, but above all to promote sustainable land development and brownfield revitalization.
In 2024, the total take-up of commercial land ready for construction amounted to 19.4 ha, a significant decrease compared to 2023 (34.6 ha). The figure is below the long-term average of 61 ha. In the data series going back to 1992, the year 2024 has the lowest take-up.
The significant drop in take-up is accompanied by a decline in the number of sales cases. At 33 cases, 2024 also records the lowest figure in the data series. In addition to the increasingly scarce supply of space, this development is also likely due to the persistently challenging economic and geopolitical environment.
The state capital of Hanover recorded the highest take-up with 7.1 ha, followed by Springe (3.9 ha) and Wunstorf (1.9 ha). Uetze and Isernhagen share fourth place with a take-up of 1.4 ha each. Municipalities with the most sales cases are the state capital Hannover with seven cases, followed by Isernhagen with five cases, Wunstorf with four cases and Neustadt with three cases.
At just under 73 %, the focus of take-up by size category in 2024 is on space up to 5,000 sqm, which is slightly below the long-term average of 75 %.
The average price of all properties sold in 2024 was € 171/sqm (previous year: € 134/sqm). While average prices per square meter rose by 72 % in the state capital of Hannover and by 46 % in the immediate surrounding area compared to the previous year, prices for commercial space in the outer region fell by 24 %.
A breakdown of space inquiries by usage group shows that logistics, freight forwarders and haulage companies took first place with just under 17% of all inquiries, followed by industry and manufacturing as well as leisure and healthcare services with 10% each. Trades, (vehicle) workshops and petrol stations account for 9% of demand, while hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues account for 8%.
At 651 ha, the supply of commercial space (as at April 2025) has increased for the first time since 2016 compared to the previous year (622 ha). Over the last ten years, the supply has decreased by 16 %. In terms of marketability, the supply is divided into
- 55 ha of immediately marketable B-plan sites (developed, municipal property),
- 150 ha of subsequently marketable B-plan sites (undeveloped and/or privately owned),
- 446 ha of F-plan areas (without legally binding B-plan).
In terms of potential uses, industrial sites ( GI sites) are of particular interest to project development companies due to their suitability for three-shift or night-time operations. The potential area of GI sites in F and B plans, excluding brownfield sites, is 43 ha (previous year: 43 ha).
There are currently 14 larger properties (86 ha in total) in the Hannover Region that can be classified as potentially reusable brownfield sites . Half of these brownfield sites are located in the state capital Hannover. Reasons for the current vacancy include contaminated sites and/or old buildings that make reuse difficult.
In addition to the currently intended new designations of commercial areas with B-plan or F-plan designation, preview areas in the order of approx. 518 ha are under discussion in the municipalities.
On the basis of the commercial space turnover of the last ten years, the arithmetical range of the commercial space supply of the B-plan areas was calculated in years . In 14 (previous year: 15) of the 21 municipalities, the range of the space supply is below the critical five-year limit, a period that is required on average for the (over)planning and development of new F-plan or preview areas. Hemmingen, Seelze, Wennigsen and Wunstorf currently have no commercial space with a legally binding development plan.
Burgdorf, Hemmingen, Seelze, Wennigsen and Wunstorf do not currently have any commercial space with a legally binding B-plan. As in the previous year, the arithmetical range must be classified as critical, especially for the location types logistics, services and knowledge and technology-oriented industries.
Guidelines for commercial space development
The Hannover Region has developed the following guidelines for commercial space development together with the cities and municipalities:
- Ensuring a supply of commercial space for all municipalities with a calculated range of at least five years as a basic requirement ,
- Mobilization of additional commercial areas at the focal points of the Regional Spatial Planning Programme (RROP) ,
- Creation of priority locations for large-scale industrial, production and logistics companies with sufficient dimensions for supra-regional marketing at locations close to freeways,
- Mobilization of underutilized inner development sites in existing commercial areas,
- Revitalization of brownfield sites to limit the consumption of open space,
- higher ecological standards in the construction of business parks within the municipal sphere of influence.
To implement the guidelines, the Hannover Region adopted the Regional Commercial Space Investment Program (REGIP) in 2019, among other things, to provide financial support to municipalities for regionally significant development measures.
The aim is to implement measures for the revitalization of brownfield sites or redevelopment measures in existing commercial areas in particular. The funding requirements include sustainability criteria and minimum standards for urban development planning , such as rainwater management and soil protection, urban climate and biodiversity, energy supply from renewable energies and sustainable mobility.