In the fourth instalment of a series of reports about COVID-19 and the implications for logistics real estate, Prologis Research looked at customer resilience amid high economic volatility and concluded that diversity of the company client base is a key factor in insulating the portfolio in turbulent market conditions.

Has the Polish real estate market been hit by the coronavirus pandemic? How will it change over the course of several months? Cushman & Wakefield presented a summary of Q1 2020 on the Polish property market, the impact of the pandemic on each sector and economic forecasts for Poland in its new report.

Consulting company Walter Herz has been appointed the leading agency responsible for commercialisation of space in EQ2 office building in Warsaw, developed by Waryński Group. Handover is planned for March 2021.

The social distancing in office spaces after COVID-19 involves an immediate action strategy to adapt to the new workplace normality, which is why Cushman & Wakefield Echinox has formed a multidisciplinary team to help employers prepare for the gradual return of their employees in office spaces.

Panattoni has embarked on a new project, Panattoni Park Tricity East III, totalling close to 33,000 sqm. The park will be completed in a single phase and has already found tenants for more than 26,000 sqm. They are logistics operators: Greenyard Logistics Poland, providing services to the FMCG sector, which will take up close to 12,000 sqm, and Omega Pilzno, specialising in comprehensive supply chain services, with a lease of 14,500 sqm. Project commissioning is anticipated in Q1 2021.

The COVID-19 crisis is expected to accelerate change in global supply chains, manufacturing and online retailing that could benefit the European property market, says Colliers International in its latest “Trends Emerging and Accelerated by the Covid-19 Pandemic” report.

The immediate impact of COVID-19 pandemic in the real estate market will be felt during the second quarter of the year while on the medium and long term the focus will be on health and safety measures as well as on technology, these are the main takeaways from the Romania Call Flash, organized by CBRE Romania.

Property Forum’s series of virtual events, organised in partnership with the RICS, continues with a free online panel discussion providing a market update for Bulgaria. Attendance is free but registration is mandatory.

While house prices in Budapest rose 14.1% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2019, they fell 2.0% in nominal terms on a quarterly basis, the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) reported. The central bank has not recorded a q-o-q drop in house prices since Q4 2013.

The construction industry seems to have been relatively less affected than some other industries (like tourism) as most large projects continue during the lockdown measures across the region. The Eastern European Construction Forecasting Association has published a COVID-19 update on the construction sectors of Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovenia.