The Polish economy is already past the low point of the short-term economic activity downturn. However, the construction industry is not at this point yet as it responds to economic shocks after a certain time period. This is why the first half of 2021 will be marked by challenges. The market pins its hopes on the new EU financial envelope, but a tangible effect on the investment volume will not become apparent before H2 2021.

JLL announced the next stage in its ambitious sustainability program by committing to achieve net zero carbon emissions across all JLL-occupied buildings by 2030. The firm also advocates a net zero approach for all its clients and suppliers.

In the first half of the year, Poland ranked second in Europe for net leased warehouse space. Demand for warehouses is steady and further investments continue to be made on the market. A new 7R City Flex Last Mile Logistics project will be built at Graniczna Street in Wrocław. PIKA, a company which specializes in the outsourcing of document management, processing and distribution, has chosen 7R which will prepare a high-bay warehouse space adapted to the strict standards of document storage. The general contractor of the 7R City Flex Wrocław Airport facility is Atlas Ward Polska.

The amendment to the Construction Law in Poland came into force on 19 September. Changes include a division of project documentation, organization of the provisions which specify what works require a building permit, and legislation on unauthorized construction, and in the opinion of experts from JLL, ought to be of benefit to investors, developers and construction companies operating on the Polish market.

Most hotels in Budapest will see their revenues decrease by more than 70% compared to 2019 this year, while hotels outside the capital expect 20% to 40% lower revenues, according to a representative survey commissioned by the Hungarian Hotel and Restaurant Association.

In the second quarter of 2020, Echo Investment generated a net profit of €2.3 million (PLN 10.4 million), which mainly resulted from the appreciation in the value of projects under construction and the handover of 222 apartments to buyers.

Local developer One Untied Properties announced that its One Verdi Park project, located in the Floreasca neighbourhood of northern Bucharest, will focus mainly on exclusive residential units. The developer’s initial plan included a 17-floor office tower, offering 21,000 sqm of commercial space, alongside a residential tower. One Verdi Park is scheduled for completion in Q4 2021.

Czech investment group Portiva and Micronix have acquired the Central Kladno shopping centre in Brno from Crestyl for approximately €74.8 million (CZK 2 billion).

AFI Europe Group contracted a €170 million loan from a consortium of banks consisting of Erste Bank Group, pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank, and Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR) to acquire NEPI Rockcastle’s office portfolio of in Romania.

The condition of the Kraków office sector has been defined by successive records in recent years. It is the largest regional office market in Poland, the second city after Warsaw, which in 2017 crossed the one million sqm threshold, and the main location for BPO/SSC companies in Central and Eastern Europe. However, the global pandemic, which affected all segments of the economy, undoubtedly also affected the office sector. How? According to JLL’s latest report, in the first half of the year, demand for offices in Kraków was about 15% lower than H1 2019. In addition, the increase in remote working has prompted some employers to reorganize their offices.