Swedish furniture brand Ikea has opened an expanded order centre in Mall Galleria, Burgas. It features 140 sqm of retail space, a new kitchen designing studio with a showroom and four additional planning areas.

The upcoming launch of the first hotel in Poland for the Barceló chain, operating under the brand name Barceló Hotels & Resorts, marks the final phase of investment for the Elektrownia Powiśle complex in Warsaw. It represents the completion of all planned construction work for the revitalization of the former power station site, which was conducted by Tristan Capital Partners’ EPISO 4 Fund and White Star Real Estate.

New office supply in the first three months of 2023 totalled 68,100 sqm and was delivered in three cities only: Kraków, Wrocław and Tricity. According to Savills, at the end of March, over 1 million sqm of office space was vacant, equating to an average vacancy rate of close to 16%.

BNY Mellon, an international company from the banking and finance sector, has leased all office space in the second phase of Skanska’s Centrum Południe complex located in Wrocław. The tenant’s employees will occupy approx. 20,300 sqm of office space. The opening of the new office is scheduled for April 2024. This is the largest lease transaction in Wrocław since 2020.

According to preliminary data from the National Statistical Institute, the number of newly built residential buildings in the first quarter of 2023 was 1 289, and the number of newly built dwellings was 4,427.

Progress on ESG in the real estate industry has been seen since 2018 and sustainability considerations are shaping investment strategies and client demand, concluded speakers of the ESG in real estate panel of Romania ESG Forum 2023, organised by Green Forum and Property Forum last week in Bucharest.

Analysts at Bencont Investments have recorded sales of only 197 apartments in new buildings in Bratislava in Q1 2023. According to them, the unit price of available apartments remained at €4,900/sqm. In Q1, the supply consisted of as many as 3,229 vacant apartments in new buildings. Realisation prices increased by 20% year-on-year, but there was a 1.43% quarter-on-quarter decrease. Q1 2023 was thus still marked by weakening demand, according to the quarterly real estate market analysis of Bencont.

The Hungarian branch of the global developer Panattoni is going to build a 64,000 sqm logistics complex near the Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport at the junction of the M0/M5 motorways. The facility, planned to be delivered in two phases is scheduled to open next year.

JLL Poland has been selected as the exclusive agent responsible for the commercialization process of the Unity Centre complex, the largest business complex in Kraków. The project is owned by UNIQA Real Estate Management and GD&K Group.

The Ascott Limited (Ascott), one of the world's biggest hospitality owners and operators with a presence in over 260 cities, will enter Romania following an agreement with local developer Forty Management. The planned hotel in Bucharest will be operated by the luxury brand The Crest Collection.