Ann Gray FRICS, President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and President-Elect Tina Paillet FRICS spoke to Property Forum at MIPIM about the recent and upcoming changes in the organization, innovative carbon reduction standards and creating equal opportunities in the property industry.

Ѕоfіа hаѕ ѕееn а dесlіnе іn thе numbеr оf residential trаnѕасtіоnѕ fоr a thіrd соnѕесutіvе quаrtеr. According to the latest data from the National Statistical Institute for the first quarter of the year, property sales in the capital shrank annually by 12.2% and reached 6381.

According to a report by Newmark Polska, development activity across the EU continued unabated, with more than 20 million sqm of modern warehouse and industrial space coming onto the market in 2022. Poland topped the league table with close to 4.4 million sqm. Germany and the Czech Republic also reported high supply levels: over 2 million sqm and 1.1 million sqm, respectively. Poland is also on the podium in terms of demand.

According to speakers of Bratislava Property Forum 2023, many investors are in the price discovery phase, waiting to see what’s next. Nevertheless, during the debate, participants mentioned many inspiring possibilities that could drive investors to the Slovak market.

Billa Bulgaria announced an investment of BGN 28 million (around €14 million) to open 12 new stores in the country and create 250 new jobs.

Panattoni has been granted financing for Panattoni Park Lublin II with an area of around 84,000 sqm. The €48 million loan was granted by Bank Pekao SA.

7R completed the expansion of 7R Park Kielce halls. The current tenant, myBOX Logistics, leased additional space and will thus occupy over 30 800 sqm in the project.

The office vacancy rate increased to 12.2%, representing a 0.9 pps increase quarter-on-quarter and a 2.4 pps increase year-on-year. Total demand reached 76,660 sqm, which is 24% lower than the value registered in the previous quarter, Budapest Research Forum reports.

New demand for offices in Bucharest fell by almost half in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period of last year, while total demand also declined by about 25%, according to data from real estate consultancy Colliers. 

High inflation and rising interest rates seem to have bitten in overall consumption. And although Serbia is likely to avoid recession in the short run, its real GDP growth is estimated to be a moderate 2%-4% this year and next with a downside risk being the looming recession in the EU. The rental housing market has been supported by the Russian and Ukrainian citizens settling down in Serbia, keeping rent rates high. Housing construction is still strong and although the volumes in building construction are already consolidating, big infrastructure projects could sustain civil engineering on all-high levels in the mid-term, according to Dejan Krajinović (Beobuild Core d.o.o.) at EECFA which conducts research on the construction markets of 8 Eastern-European countries, including Serbia.