Zentraler Immobilien Ausschuss

The Zentraler Immobilien Ausschuss (ZIA), or Central Real Estate Committee, is a German business organisation and the leading umbrella association (Spitzenverband) of the German real estate industry, headquartered in Berlin with an additional office in Brussels. It was founded in 2006 by the real estate manager Eckart John von Freyend, then CEO of the property company IVG, together with 14 founding member companies. The association was created because capital-market-oriented real estate companies, especially commercial property firms, felt insufficiently represented by existing industry bodies at the time. The ZIA represents more than 400 direct members as well as 34 member associations, which together encompass around 37,000 companies across the entire real estate sector. Its membership includes residential and commercial property companies, real estate fund managers, bank and insurance subsidiaries, property and facility managers, and other real estate service and advisory firms. The association is a member of the Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI) and of the Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Immobilienwirtschaft Deutschland (BID). The ZIA engages in lobbying, policy advocacy, and industry events. It organises the annual "Tag der Immobilienwirtschaft" (Real Estate Industry Day), which draws over 2,000 participants, and is the only German real estate association represented at the MIPIM, Europe's largest real estate trade fair. It publishes position papers, market data, and studies on topics such as energy and climate policy, corporate real estate, digitalisation, and corporate social responsibility. The ZIA also operates through its cooperation partner, the Institut für Corporate Governance in der deutschen Immobilienwirtschaft (ICG). Leadership of the ZIA has included Dr. Andreas Mattner, who served as president for 15 years from 2009 to 2024 and is now honorary president, and Iris Schöberl, who succeeded him in June 2024. Since January 2024, Aygül Özkan has served as the association's chief executive (Hauptgeschäftsführerin). The ZIA opened a country office in Switzerland (Zurich) in 2022 and in Austria in 2023, expanding its presence beyond Germany and the EU.

The Zentraler Immobilien Ausschuss (ZIA) was founded in 2006 in Berlin by Eckart John von Freyend, then CEO of the real estate company IVG, together with 14 founding member companies. At the time, there was hardly any interest representation for capital-market-oriented real estate companies, and commercial property firms in particular were not adequately represented. One year after its founding, the ZIA joined the Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI), and since September 2007 it has maintained an office in Brussels to represent its interests at the European Union level. From the general meeting on 17 June 2009 until the general meeting on 10 June 2024, Dr. Andreas Mattner led the ZIA for 15 years. He was succeeded by Iris Schöberl, Managing Director Germany at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. Since its founding, the association's membership has grown steadily. Through its members, including over 35 associations, the ZIA currently represents around 37,000 companies from the entire real estate industry. In 2012, the Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Immobilienwirtschaft Deutschland (BID) was founded, in which the ZIA is a member alongside other associations that had previously belonged to the Bundesvereinigung Spitzenverbände der Immobilienwirtschaft (BSI), which was dissolved. On 1 January 2018, the Bundesverband Sachwerte und Investmentvermögen (BSI) was absorbed into the ZIA. In 2022, the ZIA opened a country office in Switzerland (Zurich), and in 2023 in Austria. Since January 2024, Aygül Özkan has served as the association's chief executive (Hauptgeschäftsführerin). The ZIA organises the annual "Tag der Immobilienwirtschaft" (TdI) since 2008, which with over 2,000 participants is considered an important industry event. At the MIPIM, Europe's largest real estate trade fair, the ZIA has been represented for years as the only German real estate association, organising presentations for German locations together with German cities, such as the Berlin Brunch. The ZIA is a co-initiator of the "Stadt und Grün" charter and a founding member of the German government's standing project group on the "construction of major projects". At the end of 2014, the association began an innovation initiative. In June 2015, together with the Hauptverband der Deutschen Bauindustrie, it introduced the "Leitlinien für Fair Business" for partnership-based cooperation in the construction and real estate world, and since 1 January 2016, the two organisations have offered a joint contact point for dispute resolution. The ZIA is a founding member of the "Bündnis für bezahlbares Wohnen und Bauen" at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety. Since May 2016, it has worked with a "Task Force Energie". In terms of impact and critical scrutiny, the ZIA reported spending €2.7 million on lobbying in 2023 for 68 named employees, who participated in 23 specific regulatory projects. Membership fees in 2023 amounted to €7.4 million. Lobbypedia contains a number of critical remarks about the ZIA, including reports of eight personal conversations between ZIA representatives and top politicians between March 2018 and October 2021, as reported in a response to a written question from a member of the Bundestag from the Left Party. At the "Tag der Immobilienwirtschaft", the ZIA invites high-ranking political representatives. Like many associations, the ZIA uses party sponsorship, a procedure enabled by political parties that has been subject to transparency rules since 2025.

• 2024

  Iris Schöberl becomes President on 10 June; Aygül Özkan becomes Chief Executive in January

• 2023

  ZIA opens country office in Austria

• 2022

  ZIA opens country office in Switzerland (Zurich)

• 2018

  Bundesverband Sachwerte und Investmentvermögen (BSI) absorbed into ZIA on 1 January

• 2016

  Joint contact point for dispute resolution begins on 1 January; Task Force Energie starts in May

• 2015

  ZIA and Hauptverband der Deutschen Bauindustrie introduce 'Leitlinien für Fair Business'

• 2014

  ZIA launches innovation initiative

• 2012

  Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Immobilienwirtschaft Deutschland (BID) founded with ZIA as member

• 2009

  Dr. Andreas Mattner becomes President on 17 June

• 2008

  First annual 'Tag der Immobilienwirtschaft' (TdI) organised

• 2007

  ZIA joins the Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI); opens Brussels office in September

• 2006

  ZIA founded in Berlin by Eckart John von Freyend and 14 founding companies

The ZIA positions itself as the leading umbrella association and political voice of the German real estate industry, bridging business, science, and politics.

• ZIA-IW-Immobilienstimmungsindex (ISI)

  Quarterly sentiment index for the German real estate industry

• Digitalisierungsstudie

  Annual study on digitalisation in the real estate industry

• Corporate Real Estate publications

  Position papers, market data, and guides on corporate real estate

• ZIA-Positionspapier: Strom und Netze

  Position paper on electricity and grids from the real estate industry's perspective

1. 1HomePage | ZIAzia-deutschland.de
2. 2Geschichte | ZIAzia-deutschland.de
3. 3Corporate Real Estate | ZIAzia-deutschland.de
4. 4Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) | ZIAzia-deutschland.de
5. 5Zentraler Immobilien Ausschussde.wikipedia.org
6. 6Wikidata Q136160wikidata.org