Out of interest, where in Berlin were the rents so cheap? I recently moved to the Berlin area and found rents to be on par with London for a 3 bedroom place.

I have been visiting Berlin for the better part of 8 years and I am astounded at the increase I have seen in living costs. Food and entertainment has also gone WAY up.

In my opinion Berlin is by no means the "cheap" city that it once was. When you combine that with the average salary in Berlin being lower than in other big German cities (and a lot lower than London) then it has become a real issue as of late for most people.