As a number of economic indicators show positive signs for Germany, Irish firms including Warren Private Clients, BDO Simpson Xavier, Signal and Davy are all scouring the market for investment opportunities for private clients.

Industry sources report that many private individuals are also going it alone. "There are a lot of people on planes to Berlin, " said Peter Carthy, head of real estate acquisitions at BDO Simpson Xavier.

"Everyone's looking."

The intensified interest in German investment is a play on the German economy recovering. The gamble is that in five years consumers will be spending more money "Yields are strong and if you borrow money over a short lease you are getting a strong paydown in debt, " said one property source.

Marie Hunt of CBRE Gunne, notes that six deals were done by Irish investors in Germany last year, representing 16% of total EU property investment by Irish investors.

"Our view is that this will at least double this year, " she said. "There is a lot of appetite for the key cities, for Berlin in particular."

Ciaran McNamara, cofounder with Enda Woods of Signature Capital, has done four deals in Germany in the past seven months, spending a total of around 80m. On top of that, Signature is raising an 80m residential fund which will be used to buy 75m of residential property.

In December, Signature Capital and Davy Stockbrokers were the underbidders on a German property portfolio that sold for over 380m.

The same bidders are now shortlisted for a 700m portfolio of shopping centres, in a deal that would be backed by Paddy Killen and Tony Leonard's Clarendon Properties.

"We've been monitoring Germany for the past couple of years, " McNamara said.

"The market has turned, and the deals we have done look good so far." The advantage McNamara sees is that "you're getting Eastern European exposure without currency exposure, and you're dealing with a first-world economy".

Among other firms searching the German market is BDO Simpson Xavier. A consortium of investors put together by the firm paid close to 50m last year for a commercial property in the centre of Berlin, at a yield of 6.5%. It is "looking at two or three things at the moment", Carthy said.

Carthy expects a strong flow of investor money into Germany this year, but issued some caveats. "We are finding it difficult to source quality stock, " he said. "There is a raft of property available, but the quality is sometimes difficult to assess."

The advice Carthy offers to investors going it alone to source property in Germany is to be careful in dealing with local agents.

"There are sometimes two or three agents involved in a deal, and property gets hawked around much more than it does in the Irish market. It is not as confidential as the Irish market or even the UK."