The eleventh digitalisation study, jointly published by the German Property Federation (ZIA) and EY Parthenon, attests to the real estate industry's continued willingness to invest in digital transformations. Even in times of economic uncertainty, most companies are maintaining or even increasing their digitalisation budgets. Technological foundations are established in large parts of the industry, but the analysis reveals a discrepancy between the desired goal of digital resilience and its practical implementation and measurability. This gap between aspiration and reality forms a central finding of the investigation.
Aygül Özkan, Chief Executive of ZIA, highlighted that digital resilience represents a crucial topic for the real estate industry as well as the entire national economy. She emphasised that the industry is on the right track, as digitalisation is firmly embedded in corporate strategies. However, the crucial next step is not only to create resilience, but also to prove it and consistently develop it further.
Key findings on development up to 2026
The study forecasts a shift in investments for 2026: smaller digitalisation budgets in the range of 1 to 5 per cent of turnover will reduce from 62 to 48 per cent, while medium volumes of 11 to 20 per cent of turnover will increase from 2 to 8 per cent. Overall, 61 per cent of the companies surveyed have increased their digitalisation budgets. Key inhibiting factors for digitalisation cited are the shortage of skilled workers (74 per cent), costs (68 per cent), and data quality (62 per cent). For the first time, the lack of digital competence, including cybersecurity, was also recorded, with 45 per cent of respondents considering it a hurdle. This indicates a more precise naming of the challenges within the industry.
Artificial intelligence is rated as business-relevant for the next five years by 96 per cent of respondents, representing the highest value among all queried technologies. Cloud solutions and Big Data are also considered indispensable enablers by a clear majority – 94 and 79 per cent respectively. Although more than two-thirds of companies define technological independence as a strategic goal, 70 per cent are simultaneously highly dependent on a few large IT providers, which underscores the necessity of measures for digital sovereignty.
Challenges in practical implementation
This year, the study focused on how companies use digitalisation to increase their organisational, technological, and economic resilience, and how independently they manage their data, processes, and technology decisions. It shows that basic technological measures such as cloud solutions, backups, and cybersecurity strategies are largely established. More than half of companies have already implemented or concretely planned strategic resilience measures. 70 per cent of respondents report noticeable cost savings and efficiency gains through digitalisation. Nevertheless, significant shortcomings persist in measurement and management:
- —Only one in ten companies fully measures digital resilience; in about half, the relevant key figures are incomplete, and almost a third collects no data on digital resilience at all.
- —Forecasting and early warning systems are comprehensively used by only 14 per cent of companies; more than one in three companies completely foregoes such solutions.
- —Crisis simulations remain the exception, although they are essential for closing the gap between perceived and actual robustness.
- —The resilience of real estate is rated as high or very high by 40 per cent of respondents, but the majority estimates the adaptability of their portfolio as only mediocre.
Digital technologies are primarily deployed where regulatory requirements and immediate efficiency gains are tangible, such as in the context of energy and ESG pressure. Future technologies like Digital Twins or Predictive Maintenance, however, are only sporadically used so far. Geopolitical risks are often still underestimated in strategic portfolio alignment, despite recent global crises. Dependence on a few large IT providers is recognised, but multi-vendor strategies and European alternatives are still uncommon.
Dr. Lars Scheidecker, Partner at EY Parthenon, emphasised that resilience is not created by building individual technologies, but by the interplay of data infrastructure, clear governance, and the courage to consistently roll out pilot projects. Aygül Özkan added that digital resilience is not a foregone conclusion. The foundations have been laid, but the task now is to measure, test, and actively manage resilience to strengthen the competitiveness of the entire industry. The study results were presented at a press conference and are available for download immediately.
