GSW Immobilien

Line

• Michael Zahn (Chairman of the Board), Andreas Segal and Lars Wittan
• Uwe E. Flach (Chairman of the Supervisory Board)

Founded in 1924, GSW Immobilien AG is a listed residential property company in Berlin, which has around 60,000 housing units. The corporate strategy of GSW is focused on the long-term management of rental housing. As of December 31, 2012, the property portfolio of the company was valued at approximately 3.3 billion euros. In fiscal 2012, the Group employed an average of 557 employees, generated revenue of 160 million euros.

History

1924, the urban " Wohnungsfürsorgegesellschaft Berlin mbH " was founded to assign new promotion means in Berlin. Mid-1930s, the company began construction of their own homes. In 1937, eight urban housing and housing associations to " Charitable Settlement and Housing Corporation " ( GSW ) were merged, which was with a stock of over 37,000 apartments to the largest housing associations in the city. In the course of World War II, large parts of buildings were destroyed.

As a result of the political division of Berlin in 1948, the company lost the power to dispose of their assets in the eastern part of the city. Starting in 1950, the reconstruction of the destroyed living room was at the center of corporate activity. The 1960s and 1970s were marked by large development projects such as the Neukölln high -deck settlement. After the reunification and the retransfer of the former possessions, GSW focused on the rehabilitation and modernization of the located predominantly in poor condition East German population. By 1995, several offices were opened citywide.

In 2004, a consortium consisting of the acquired investment companies ' Whitehall Funds ", and affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management, GSW from the Land of Berlin for 405 million euros. Since then, the company operated as a " GSW Immobilien GmbH".

With effect from 1 April 2010, the company changed its name to " GSW Immobilien AG " to. On 15 April 2011 the first listing in the Prime Standard followed the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. From 19 September 2011 to 26 November 2013, the GSW was listed in the MDAX.

On the initiative of the Dutch pension fund PGGM, which holds about 2.6 percent of GSW, the chairman Eckart John von Freyend had to ask at the AGM in June 2013 a vote of no confidence. The shareholders accused Freyend to have lifted by Bernd Kottmann a confidant in the Office of the Chairman, who does not have sufficient qualifications. Kottmann and Freyend knew each other from their time together at IVG Immobilien AG, where Freyend CEO and Kottmann had been chief financial officer. IVG is now considered to be rehabilitated. Recently also the council had spoken out against the company's management. Both laid down their offices shortly thereafter.

GSW Headquarter Building

Near the former Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin's former newspaper district in the Charlotte area of ​​Kreuzberg, is the headquarters of GSW Immobilien AG. The new building - also known by the intro of the TV series That's Life - 1999 according to plans by Matthias Sauerbruch and Louisa Hutton ( Sauerbruch Hutton ) was completed. It expands an existing high-rise building from the 1950s to a four-piece ensemble. Next to the old 17 -story office tower developed a 22 - storey skyscraper slice, the round pillbox, and a connecting flat.

The building was registered project of the EXPO 2000. It has a low-energy concept that reduces fuel consumption by a fresh air / exhaust air thermals up to 40 percent. A double facade system of glass ensures clean air and good daylight utilization. The office building in 81 meters height is crowned by a wind sail, which is also a key feature of the energy concept.

Different office space arrangements are possible per level - rampant, zweihüftige and combi - office land uses. In addition, individual Büromieteinheiten can be separated. A total of 23,400 sq m of office and retail space available. On the first floor of the new building is a 225 m² conference room with lobby and kitchenette.

When the east of Friedrichstraße location section of the cook street was renamed Rudi - Dutschke -Straße 2008, GSW Immobilien moved the house address Koch Straße 22 on a side entrance ( Charlotte Street 4) in order to avoid the re- addressing against which the housing company had sued in vain.

On June 28, 2012, the former Senator of Justice was elected Gisela von der Aue to the Supervisory Board and reduces its number of members from nine to six people.

Infringement allegations after the acquisition of state-owned real estate

1993 GSW got 23 state-owned houses of the State of Berlin paid. Contractually, however, a repair of the houses by the GSW within ten years was agreed. After the privatization of GSW in 2004, the houses went into private ownership. The newly signed contracts in this case with the new owners, Cerberus and Goldman Sachs were kept secret. 2011, the properties were sold in dilapidated state by the GSW, which led to protests and accusations of breach of contract. The protests culminated in an occupation of the affected houses in the Silesian road 25, was responding to the part of the police with an eviction. Criticism is also that most of the given away from the town houses were affected by management by the GSW next to a progressive decline also of vacancy, were sold and tenants would be displaced by luxury renovations. This is also in breach of contract because the resale and the conversion of dwellings had been prohibited in residential property without the consent of the country. Damage such as dry rot, leaky roofs or broken chimneys have not been, despite shortcomings displaying the GSW. When reselling of five houses tenants were not informed despite preemption and agreed with the privatization in 2004 tenant protection clauses have not been passed on to purchasers of real estate.

Of the opposition parties Alliance 90/The Greens Berlin, Die Linke and the pirate faction of the Red-Black Senate was asked in the plenary session on 14 June 2012, to investigate the problems and reveal the new contracts for privatization. On the part of the Senator for Urban Development and Environment Michael Müller was wanting but given initiate infringement proceedings. At meetings of the Committee for Construction, Housing and Transport of the Berlin House of Representatives on April 18 and June 6, Hearings were held, at which the representatives of the GSW their participation but each had canceled. Furthermore, it was established an implementation committee to oversee the contractual relations between the State of Berlin and the GSW.