With its two staircases, the building opens passages to different subjects: the fancy and the simple. The ambience of Badensche Str. 32 is clear and simple, that of Gerdauer Str. 1, with its stucco elements and art nouveau doors, more charismatic and arabesque. Apartment sizes from 37 to 111 square meters reveal what is possible: everything – from a single flat focused on the essentials to a prestigious four-room showcase residence.

The majority of the 27 residential units have a loggia or balcony. On the ground floor, there is also a very pleasant commercial unit directly on the corner. The partially landscaped inner courtyard flanks the quiet and particularly bright south side. But there is also plenty of light coming in from the east and north through generous window fronts.

Since 2017, comprehensive maintenance measures have been carried out within the building – visually and technically, but above all in terms of its energy efficiency. Facades, floor, and basement ceilings now have contemporary thermal insulation. In addition to the partial renewal of the roof, many technical components were also replaced: windows, locking systems, meters, heating pump and components of the water supply and drainage system. Together with its existing connection to the energy-flexible district heating system, the building is thus not only future-proof, but also progress-friendly.

Neither über-chic nor super-quiet. More open than bourgeois. On the move, but stout-hearted. In the midst of life and with space for everything it requires. Wilmersdorf is established; not gentrified, but accessible. It celebrates its greatness in detail. Because if you are so centrally located, you have nothing to prove.

Accordingly, the cultural spectrum is broad: the district is home to five embassies, two large parks, the largest art academy (UDK), the oldest existing mosque in Germany, but also a growing Jewish community, top-class restaurants, and research institutions such as the Max Planck Institute.

Formerly the artists’ haven of avant-gardists like Bertold Brecht and Erich Maria Remarque, cosmopolitans of all cultures have found their place here. Friendly. Cordial. Free of attitude. But with an understanding of social modernism.

“Wilmersdorf is when the simple, refined charm of a typical West German town gradually and seamlessly transitions into the vast Berlin with its thousand facets.”