The investment volume achieved in 2016 totalled almost €1.2 billion with 46 transactions recorded in core CEE hotel investment markets. In comparison, 2015 reached just over €700 million with 45 transactions. Austria was the star performer with almost €800 million transacted, which made up 67% of the total investment volume. In other CEE markets volume was lower than in 2015 with a particular decline in Poland which more than halved in volume. The Czech Republic accounted for 18% of total CEE investment share; most of the investment took place in Prague which saw 7 transactions including the Hilton Old Town, Park Hotel and Chopin Hotel.

Optim Project Management was assigned as General Designer for a new mixed commercia  (retail & offices) development in Timișoara. Optim PM will also provide project management services for this new project.

Master Management Group is developing the tallest building in Łódź. The 19-storey building will be a part of the Piotrkowska 155 mixed-use complex, currently under construction. 

The Octava FIZAN fund is in the process of acquiring a portfolio of 11 office and retail assets in Poland, including Onyx in Kraków and Centrum Krakowska 61, Renaissance Tower and Eureka Park in Warsaw, from two BPH FIZ funds. Savills is advising the buyer on the transaction, which is expected to be finalized by the end of H1 2017. The parties did not reveal the value of the acquired assets, but the estimated value significantly exceeds €100 million.

According to Christie & Co's recent hotel market snapshot, Bucharest is an emerging market for hotel investments. While the city's hotel market may yet to fully recover from the financial crisis, it has made tremendous progress in recent years, reporting upward trends in key performance indicators and growing investor interest.

2017 will deliver only 17,000 sqm of new space to the Brno office market. When considering the size of the market, together with Budapest, this is the lowest increment of new offices in Central and Eastern Europe – 3.3%. A lack of new office space may cause rental prices to increase. These figures are based on an analysis made by Cushman & Wakefield, which compares the office markets across 12 cities in Central Europe.

Futureal Group’s Advance Tower is getting closer to becoming the first office building in Hungary obtaining the Well Building Standard (WELL) certification. The International Well Building Institute’s system examines buildings’ impact on human body, health and environment and rates them based on 7 categories – air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort and mind. The pre-qualification process of Advance Tower that will be built on Váci Road has already started. All further office projects of Futureal Group will be realized in line with the requirements of the Well Building international standard. 

Atenor announced the sale of the third building of its Váci Greens campus in Budapest to Hungarian real-estate fund OTP Prime Ingatlanbefektetesi Alap. Building B contains 25,300 sqm of office space and 399 basement parking spaces. The structure was completed in March 2016 and is currently 65% leased. 

Even though all figures available as well as market sentiment point to further growth on the Hungarian commercial property market, its players still keep looking over their shoulders for potential threats to this growth. According to the speakers of the Portfolio - RICS Valuation and Investment 2017 conference, global politics and potentially rising interest rates pose the biggest threat for CEE. We report from Budapest. 

Immofinanz rented approx. 80,000 sqm of office space in Bucharest during the abbreviated 2016 financial year. That represents more than 40% of the total standing office portfolio in Romania. These transactions are expected to increase the occupancy rate in the office sector in Romania from roughly 88% to more than 94%. New rentals and expansions accounted for roughly 47,000 sqm or 60% of the rented space, while the remainder represents contract extensions.