Approximately €754 million was invested in Polish commercial property in the first quarter of 2019, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s latest investment market report.

Futureal Group has sold its Advance Tower located on the Váci road office corridor to Erste Real Estate Fund. This is the first transaction in the Hungarian market, which includes a WELL pre-qualified office building having a beneficial impact on employees’ health and comfort. The real estate fund has acquired the first phase of the complex developed by the group, while the second phase could join its portfolio under a forward deal.

In order to finance its further growth, Globalworth successfully completed a capital increase of €500.5 million. The EBRD invested a further €25 million to support the company’s planned growth. The Bank became a shareholder in Globalworth in December 2017 and currently holds a 5.8 per cent stake in the company.

White Star Real Estate is starting construction of a new business park, named park22, which is adjacent to the Campona Shopping Centre in southern Budapest. This multi-phase offers prospective tenants flexible solutions that reflect today’s market needs including warehouses with mezzanine office units and independent office spaces. In the course of implementing the project, special emphasis is being given to maintaining a healthy balance between green space and buildings, as the 15-hectare site will comprise of 60,800 sqm of lettable warehouse and office space and 53,500 sqm of greenery.

The pace of yield compression decelerated across Europe’s commercial real estate markets in the first quarter of 2019, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s latest DNA of Real Estate report.

The first quarter of 2019 proved to be a very good one for the industrial sector in Poland - the gross take-up exceeded 800,000 sqm with more than 620,000 sqm being delivered to the market, and approx. two million sqm under construction. JLL summarized the situation on the Polish industrial market at the end of Q1 2019.

SGI SA has sold the Lastadia Office in Szczecin to a company managed by Greenstone Sp. z o.o. Lastadia was delivered to the market in 2013 and offers ca. 12,500 sqm of GLA. It is located at the banks of Oder River along Wały Chrobrego and is fully let to international and Polish tenants.

The phenomenal growth of the ‘flex’ sector is set to continue apace in years to come, with flexible workspace in EMEA grow by over 50% by 2022 and the number of office workers occupying this space growing to 750,000 across the region. That’s according to global real estate advisor, Colliers International, which recently released its Flexible Workspace Outlook Report 2019.

In the first quarter of 2019, leasing activity hit 140,100 sqm on the Warsaw office market, of which more than 101,000 was transacted under new deals and expansions. Cushman & Wakefield summarised the Warsaw office market in Q1 2019.

JLL advised Atrium European Real Estate Limited in the disposal process of two Polish shopping centres, namely Atrium Felicity and Atrium Koszalin to the ECE European Prime Shopping Centre Fund II, managed by the independent fund managing company ECE Real Estate Partners. The parties signed on 9th May 2019 an agreement concerning the sale of both assets for €298 million, representing around 3% premium to book value as at 31 March 2019. The transaction is subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions precedent and is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2019.