Polish industrial and logistics developer MLP Group continues its expansion strategy welcoming Austria to its portfolio. The developer has successfully acquired a plot to develop a new urban project MLP Business Park Vienna, located in the north-eastern part of Vienna in close proximity to the S2 expressway. The undeveloped land has a total area of 98,249 sqm and will offer almost 55,000 sqm of leasable space upon development completion. The transaction was liaised by the real estate advisor Otto Immobilien /Knight Frank.

Property investment volumes for the CEE region totalled €10.4 billion in 2020, 24% below 2019 levels. Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary all saw year-over-year declines in volumes. Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria all saw increases. By comparison, EMEA  volumes are estimated to be down by ca. 27% YoY but Colliers’ latest reports indicates a strong rebound in 2021. Investor appetite remains strong for 2021 for the CEE region but will continue to be challenged by available product and the varying impact of COVID on certain sectors.

2020 was a good year for the Romanian transaction market, with a volume that approached the threshold of €1 billion. Most of the transactions concluded were for office buildings, with a volume of €784 million. Although estimates for 2021 are more modest, we can expect the sale of several important assets to go through this year. Property Forum lists the office buildings in Bucharest that could change owners in the next 12 months.

The fourth quarter of 2020 closed a year full of changes and upcoming trends on the Czech industrial market. Despite the pandemic, the industrial segment proved stable, and there was a significant acceleration in the development of e-commerce, and specifically the digitalisation of the entire retail sector. There remains a high demand for premises on the market from investors and clients, and this interest puts pressure on prices, which will increase significantly at premium locations in 2021, according to 108 Agency.

E-commerce makes a major leap registering important figures globally, reaching 4.28 trillion dollars in 2020, an increase of 27.6% compared to 2019, and the demand for logistics services is on the rise. Here are the latest trends in the e-commerce and logistics sectors as predicted by futurologist Sean Culey – strategist, transformation advisor, and external consultant to P3 Logistics Parks. 

Gran Via Real Estate announced the acquisition of a new plot in Bucharest for residential development. 

European Logistics Investment (ELI) has delivered three new development projects. The three latest completed developments in Bielsko-Biała, Ruda Śląska and Toruń will add 145,000 sqm of modern multi-purpose logistics space to the CEE market. The parks are 100% leased.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, dealmakers are broadly positive about the prospects for M&A in Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe (CEE/SEE), according to a new survey from Wolf Theiss and Mergermarket. Just over half (52%) of respondents said that the health crisis will increase their appetite for deals in the next 12 months.

Austria-based retail developer and operator SES Spar European Shopping Centers has announced the opening of a new retail park in the Hungarian city of Kaposvár which will take place on 11 March 2021. S-PARK Kaposvár is a supraregional supply centre featuring strong anchor stores, including the only Interspar market of the city, located in the southwest of the country. The addition of S-PARK Kaposvár increases SES’s property portfolio to a total of 30 shopping destinations in six countries.

There were 11,185 residential property deals made in Hungary in January 2021, according to the latest monthly transaction estimate by real estate group Duna House. This is the highest figure recorded for the month of January in the last five years.