How easy is it to get on the housing ladder in Berlin?

[rookie]

If I make the move to Berlin I’d like to buy my own place before too long, either as a sell-on investment should I choose to leave down the road or to get on the housing ladder quickly if I decide to stay and settle there permanently. Does Berlin have a good housing market at the entry level, places like one bedroom apartments in decent areas, or do rentals properties make it hard to buy below the level of townhouses and small suburban properties?

[Paolo_Dente1]

Not very easy, unfortunately. In the last years there's been a steep price increase (both to rent and to buy), that's even worse in some areas - in Kreuzberg we've recently seen a listing for a 10sqm "apartment" for 750 euros/month, which is more than what you would pay for an apartment ten times bigger, just three years ago. Of course this is an outlier, and I believe they'll change the listing pretty soon, but that's the trend.
Prospective buyers don't fare that well either: from what I can see, the prices are now comparable to that of any other big european city (London and Paris excluded because those guys are crazy), at least in the most fashionable areas.
On the other hand, there's still a lot of "unexplored territory" where the prices are more than reasonable - a 3-room apartment for 250.000 euros or less - with the caveat that you're probably going to have to speak a lot more German than what you can get by on in Kreuzberg/Friedrichshain, and night life may be a bit tamer than what you would expect.
One final word of warning: renting is a lot more difficult than buying for several reasons, so expect anywhere from two weeks to two months to find a place (unless you're ok with overpriced dumps, of course).

[danielweber]

I think the market in Berlin is somewhat overheated. Though many claim that prices will keep on rising. You will need to take a good amount of money in your hand for something descent, while payment is not as high as in other German cities. One thing to keep in mind. The extra cost for buying property is also to be considered (notary, estate agent,..). The main difference to many other countries though is, that you will have to pay extra tax if you sell within 10 years (speculation tax I think it is called). Also depending on the credit line you might need and if you want to close it earlier, you might have to pay a fine as well (Vorfälligkeitszinsen). So over all I would only advice to buy if you plan on staying longer. Also renting out the apartment if you move away and want to keep it can change financing aspects. The law for landlords is quite weak as well and can break your neck.