Vonovia
| Company type | Societas Europaea |
|---|---|
| Industry | Residential real estate |
| Founded | 2001 |
Key people | Rolf Buch (Chief Executive Officer) Clara C. Streit (Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board) |
| Revenue | € 4.9 billion |
Number of employees | 12,056 (2024) |
| Website | https://www.vonovia.com |
Vonovia SE is a private residential real estate company headquartered in Bochum, Germany. It originated in 2001 as Deutsche Annington, which acquired former federal railway employee housing. Through successive takeovers of Buwog, Conwert, Gagfah, Viterra and others, Vonovia has grown substantially. Deutsche Wohnen is also part of the group.
As of 31 December 2023, Vonovia and its subsidiaries own over 545,919 apartments in Germany, Sweden and Austria, plus they manage a further 71,424 units on behalf of third parties.[1] Properties are organised into neighbourhood management units to address local and social needs, and the company provides housing‑related services, including energy supply.
Vonovia's business model, like those of Deutsche Wohnen and other listed residential landlords, has faced criticism for concentrating market power among large corporations and for insufficient orientation towards the public interest.[2][3]
History
Railway housing acquisitions
Following the German rail reform of the late 1990s, federal railway employee apartments were privatised.[4] Deutsche Annington, then owned by Nomura Holdings, ultimately acquired around 64,000 of the 114,000 available units in 2000. Tenants were granted lifelong occupancy rights and limits on rent increases, and were offered the opportunity to purchase their homes.[5]
Factory housing and Viterra
In the 2000s, Deutsche Annington purchased additional employee housing portfolios, including RWE’s and E.ON’s.[6] In 2005, it acquired Viterra’s 152,000‑unit portfolio—the largest such transaction in Germany at that time—with approval from the European Commission. Following integration, administration centres in Essen and Düsseldorf were consolidated in Bochum. The company financed growth both through rental income and through sales of units, but by 2007 phased out its tenant‑privatisation strategy and began exploring a public listing.[7]
Initial public offering and rebranding
Deutsche Annington went public on 11 July 2013 under CEO Rolf Buch, raising € 575 million and reducing debt. Upon Terra Firma’s exit, free float rose to 90 %. The company joined the MDAX in September 2014 and, under its new name Vonovia, entered the DAX in September 2015—the first real estate company in Germany’s premier index.
Acquisition‑driven growth
Vonovia continued to grow by acquisition: Gagfah (completed March 2015; roughly one million tenants), Conwert (24,500 units, 2016), Buwog (49,000 units, 2018) and Sweden’s Victoria Park and Hembla (2018–19). Stakes in non‑core residential groups were later divested.
Deutsche Wohnen takeover
After several unsuccessful bids, Vonovia secured a majority of Deutsche Wohnen in October 2021. The combined group now operates under dual administrations in Bochum (Vonovia headquarters) and Berlin.
New construction and market challenges
Vonovia benefited from rising demand and rents, but higher construction costs and interest rates strained its development activity. Having built no new units until 2020, the company halted a planned 60,000‑unit new‑build programme from 2023. Rising rates also forced write‑downs on parts of the portfolio, leading to asset sales—most notably Berlin’s “Südewo” portfolio to an Apollo Global Management fund in April 2023, and approximately 4,500 units to the state of Berlin for € 700 million in 2024.[8]
Corporate structure
Vonovia SE is a Societas Europaea headquartered in Bochum. The group financial statements consolidate numerous subsidiaries; Deutsche Wohnen remains a standalone sub‑group.[9]
Stock market listing
Vonovia shares (ticker VNA) trade on the regulated market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. First listed on 11 July 2013 (as Deutsche Annington). Over 85 % of shares are free float (March 2023). Major shareholders include Norges Bank, BlackRock, APG and DWS. The share is included in the DAX 40 and STOXX Europe 600.
Executive board
As of October 2023 the board comprises Rolf Buch (Chair), Arnd Fittkau, Philip Grosse, Daniel Riedl and Ruth Werhahn.
- Former CEOs
- Volker Riebel (July 2001–December 2006)
- Georg Kulenkampff (December 2006–March 2007)
- Wijnand Donkers (May 2007–September 2012)
Supervisory board
The twelve‑member board is chaired by Clara C. Streit with deputy Vitus Eckert; other members include Jürgen Fenk, Florian Funck, Ute Geipel‑Faber, Daniela Gerd tom Markotten, Matthias Hünlein, Hildegard Müller, Ariane Reinhart and Christian Ulbrich.
Portfolio
In 2022 Vonovia’s portfolio comprised 548,524 residential units, 164,330 garages/parking spaces and 8,838 commercial units, plus 72,779 residential units managed for third parties. The bulk of assets are multi‑family buildings. Germany accounts for approximately 89 % of market value (487,659 units at 61 m² average, 1.8 % vacancy, € 7.40 /m² cold rent in 2022). Sweden holds 8 % of value (39,453 units, 71 m², 3.4 % vacancy, € 9.73 /m²), Austria 3 % (21,412 units, 74 m², 4.9 % vacancy, € 5.18 /m²).
Key figures
| in million EUR | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total assets | 5,309.9 | 11,735.3 | 32,552.1 | 37,516.3 | 49,387.6 | 56,497.7 | 62,417.4 | 106,320.3 | 101,389.6 | 91,995.9 |
| Equity | 2,670.1 | 7,164.3 | 13,888.4 | 16,691.2 | 19,664.1 | 21,069.7 | 24,831.8 | 36,545.1 | 34,438.8 | 29,944.6 |
| Equity ratio (%) | 40.4% | 38.3% | 42.7% | 44.5% | 39.8% | 37.3% | 39.8% | 34.4% | 34.0% | 32.5% |
| Rental income | 789.3 | 1,414.6 | 1,538.1 | 1,667.9 | 1,894.2 | 2,074.9 | 2,285.9 | 2,571.9 | 3,168.1 | 3,292.0 |
| EBITDA (IFRS) | 500.3 | 838.4 | 1,083.7 | 1,271.8 | 1,534.4 | 1,579.6 | 1,822.4 | 2,269.3[10] | 2,763.1 | 2,583.8 |
| Operating cash flow | 453.2 | 689.8 | 828.9 | 946.0 | 1,132.5 | 1,555.9 | 1,430.5 | 1,823.9 | 2,084.3 | 1,901.2 |
| Net profit | 409.7 | 994.7 | 2,512.9 | 2,566.9 | 2,402.8 | 1,294.3 | 3,340.0 | 2,440.5 | –669.4 | –6,756.2 |
Dividend history 2014–2024
| Payment date | Dividend (EUR) | Change (+/– %) | Yield (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04 Jun 2024 | 0.90 | +5.88% | 3.07% |
| 14 Jun 2023 | 0.85 | –48.80% | 4.51% |
| 25 May 2022 | 1.66 | +4.78% | 4.89% |
| 19 May 2021 | 1.58 | +7.64% | 3.09% |
| 28 Jul 2020 | 1.47 | +9.03% | 2.70% |
| 13 Jun 2019 | 1.35 | +9.09% | 2.93% |
| 07 Jun 2018 | 1.24 | +17.86% | 3.10% |
| 16 Jun 2017 | 1.05 | +19.15% | 2.90% |
| 13 May 2016 | 0.88 | +26.65% | 2.94% |
| 04 May 2015 | 0.70 | +11.43% | 2.48% |
Criticism
Poor maintenance
Since 2005, politicians and tenants have criticised rapid profit‑driven cost‑cutting and inadequate property upkeep, prompting expert reports and a 2014 WDR documentary highlighting substandard conditions. By 2015 Vonovia’s management acknowledged past errors in maintenance spending but then reduced modernization budgets in 2018 despite tenant protests.
Expensive modernizations
Deferred maintenance led to large‑scale modernizations rolled out at tenants’ expense. Many urban tenants in Hamburg, Hanover and Mainz faced steep rent increases. An attempt to exclude repair costs from base rent for further justified increases was overturned by Germany’s Federal Court of Justice in 2011.
Utility billing issues
From 2008 onward, tenant associations and media documented erroneous and back‑dated utility and heating‑system charges. Investigations by MDR and by Günter Wallraff’s team for RTL revealed billing for uninstalled equipment.[11] Consumer protection authorities forced Vonovia group companies to remove bundled energy‑supply clauses from leases after 2022. In 2019 tenant associations announced a model case lawsuit over questionable charges; no such case was registered with the Federal Office of Justice. In February 2021, 28 regional tenants’ associations issued an open letter demanding transparent and accurate billing.[12]
External links
References
- ↑ Key figures 2023. Vonovia SE, accessed on June 1, 2024.
- ↑ Franziska Martin: Real Estate Market: How an Initiative Aims to Break the Power of Housing Corporations. In: Capital. May 26, 2021, accessed December 14, 2023.
- ↑ Wulf Rohwedder: Real estate companies: Profit not only at the expense of tenants. In: Tagesschau. WDR, July 6, 2021, accessed December 14, 2023.
- ↑ Housing army in state hands. In: Saarbrücker Zeitung. August 21, 1998.
- ↑ Eisenbahnerwohnungen: Kritik vom Rechnungshof. In: Der Spiegel. 10. Januar 2000, S. 18.
- ↑ Sabine Rössing: Nomura-Tochter tritt ein zweites Mal an. In: Financial Times Deutschland. 16. Juni 2000, S. 22.
- ↑ 5,1 Milliarden für Verkehrsminister – Verkauf der Bahnwohnungen ist umstritten. In: Der Tagesspiegel. 1. Dezember 2000, S. 24.
- ↑ https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/immobilien/vonovia-aktie-immobilien-konzern-schliesst-megadeal-mit-land-berlin/100034803.html
- ↑
- REDIRECT Template:Cite web/German
- From a page move: This is a redirect from a page that has been moved (renamed). This page was kept as a redirect to avoid breaking links, both internal and external, that may have been made to the old page name.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 From 2021 onwards the Group reports only Adjusted EBITDA.
- ↑ Mieterbund rügt Deutsche Annington. In: Allgemeine Zeitung. 27. Juni 2008.
- ↑ Tenants protest against Vonovia. Retrieved July 25, 2021.