In order to sustainably minimize the CO2 emissions and energy consumption of its international property portfolio, CA Immo relies, among other things, on centralized energy management and green building operation.

Tenants are responding to the change in customer preferences and are now increasingly likely to choose retail premises in modern residential areas. As JLL found in Miasteczko Wilanów in Warsaw, 2021 has seen the number of ground floor units grow by more than 100, an almost 25% increase on 2018. This trend is not limited to the capital city.

Didier Balcaen, CEO of Speedwell talked to Property Forum about the company’s development plans for 2021, the value of mixed-use projects and shared his long-term expectations for the Romanian property market.

Occupiers looking for quality workspace in Europe will face tough competition for the best space in the leasing market despite the most active period of new office construction in half a decade, Savills predicts. Newly developed offices set to complete in the region this year will provide 26% more space compared with 2020, says the European Office Development report.

Total demand on the Budapest office market reached 97,990 sqm in Q2 2021, representing increases of 31% quarter-on-quarter and 11% year-on-year. Renewals still made up the largest share of total leasing activity with 40%, according to the Budapest Research Forum (BRF).

Accolade expands its presence on the Polish market. The company has acquired two new industrial locations in Szczecin, with the intention of investing in the development of modern, Class A warehouses totalling 73,000 sqm GLA. The investment continues Accolade’s strategic expansion in the Szczecin region.

Property developer Speedwell says it has fully repaid a €10.1 million loan granted by BRD Societe Generale Group for the residential component of the Record Park mixed-use project in Cluj-Napoca. 

Transactions in Romania’s commercial real estate market amounted to €298 million in the first half of the year, down 23% compared to the same period of 2020, according to a report by real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

The growth of intermodal connections along the New Silk Road and the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor is creating many new opportunities for warehouse developers in Poland. Upgrade works are continuing apace on the railway lines in Małaszewicze, Bydgoszcz and Pomerania, according to Cresa Poland.

Romanians are among the European employees that would favour a hybrid work arrangement that combines office-based and remote activities, according to a survey by Colliers.