CEE Investment volumes for the Q1-Q3 2020 period have reached ca. €8.0 billion and are 12% down compared to the same period of 2019. Poland attracted €4 billion which represents 50% of all volumes in this period. Average transaction sizes are up 31.5% and the number of transactions is down 32% according to Colliers International. Despite investor appetite remaining strong for CEE, year-end volumes are likely to reach €10-11 billion, ca. 20% lower than in 2019.

The industrial/logistics asset class is presently the most attractive for a majority of banks in Central & Eastern Europe (CEE) following the breakout of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to results from the latest edition of KPMG’s Property Lending Barometer (PLB), an annual study by the global audit and advisory firm that attempts to measure banks’ lending sentiments in Europe’s property markets. That preference lies in contrast to where most bank finance in Europe has typically landed prior to COVID: the office segment.

The region’s largest shopping centre Galerija Belgrad will open on 30 October. With a total area of 300,000 sqm, Galerija Belgrade will offer local and international brands in one place, dozens of cafes and restaurants, two entertainment complexes, a cinema with the most advanced IMAX technology and as many as 3,600 parking places.

The 12-month rental outlook for both prime and secondary CBD offices is stable in Bucharest and Budapest and negative in Warsaw. In Prague, the outlook is negative for prime assets and stable for secondary assets. The vacancy rate is expected to increase over the coming year in all of the four capital cities. Occupier conditions are currently neutral across the region, with Bucharest and Budapest expected to become tenant markets over the next 12 months, according to Colliers International.

The gross lettable area of industrial locations operated by CTP has passed 6 million square meters. The growth has continued due to long term trends of increasing e-commerce and supply chain relocations, supported by the COVID-19 crisis.

The transaction in which Sif Banat – Crișana bought the shares held by Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction in Doosan IMGB, was authorized by the Competition Council. The transaction, involving a land plot with an area of ​​540,000 square meters, the largest land plot ever traded in Bucharest, was brokered by Crosspoint Real Estate.

Across Europe, markets have stabilized as the impact of COVID-19 on logistics real estate has begun to dissipate, with strong investor demand for the sector driving yield compression. The rent growth outlook has become more positive as markets have steadied and supply-side constraints have remained intact, driven by low levels of speculative development in most continental European countries. Land scarcity is also affecting rent growth.  Prologis published its third-quarter global earnings announcement along with its European and Central European performance update.

Funds managed by Partners Group are to acquire nine newly built, largely occupied office buildings from BUMA's portfolio and two assets under construction with a total leasable area of approximately 125,000 sqm for circa €200 million. The assets are located in Kraków and Wrocław. REINO Partners will partner with Partners Group to manage the portfolio.

Half of the employees who normally work in office buildings continued to work mainly from home even after the state of emergency was lifted, despite the fact that, during the summer, most companies began to bring back their employees partially or through rotation in the office spaces, as shown by a research study conducted by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox regarding the working methods of employees in Romania during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Partially due to the pandemic, demand for office space on Poland’s largest regional markets from January to September was 11% lower year-on-year. Many tenants are temporarily postponing expansion plans and relocation decisions, according to JLL’s summary.