Sülz

Sülz is where Cologne goes to settle down. Spread across a tidy grid of period streets in the city's south, the district pairs handsome Gründerzeit apartment houses with an unusually strong roster of schools and the nearby University of Cologne, making it a magnet for families and academics alike. Neighbourhood life is genuine and unhurried. The Sülzburgstrasse strings together cafes, delis and independent shops; the Manderscheider Platz hosts a busy weekly market; and on weekends residents stream into the Beethovenpark, the wildlife-park-dotted Stadtwald city forest and the lakes of the green belt just to the west. For investors, Sülz offers Cologne's appealing middle ground: better yields than the prime central quarters, with demand broadened across families, professionals and a large student population. NRW's high transfer tax and rent caps apply, and student tenancies mean more turnover, but occupancy is reliably strong in one of the city's most consistently desirable districts.

Sülz in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany