Mateusz Dereszyński, Partner and Head of Banking and Finance at Eversheds Sutherland Polska, talked to Property Forum about the availability of financing in Poland, the importance of ESG for banks and the investment forecasts for 2025.
Warehouses, retail parks or maybe the Living sector? Which projects do developers in Poland currently borrow money most frequently for?
The answer to this question will probably depend on which particular developer or financial institution we ask. There has been a relative balance between these sectors on the market for many years, although some new dynamics are evident. The logistics sector is still robust, even though the saturation level of warehouse space has increased more markedly in some regions. Lenders tend to be slightly more cautious when looking at certain locations, in particular checking the initial occupancy levels and cashflows more thoroughly.
Investment in data centres has also been seen growing, although in this case not every project will be ‘bankable’ and hence some investors, especially the biggest players, would develop them using their own funds. Talking about retail parks, there is a noticeable trend to focus on smaller facilities, especially in medium and small towns, where modern retail spaces are still lacking. Looking at the living sector, some lenders are strongly betting on PRS finance, while for others it is still “up and coming” category. Private student residences and medium-sized hotels are also well represented and growing. Rumours of stagnation in the traditional residential sector seem a tad exaggerated, although the supply of new units has increased noticeably and the sales numbers look no longer as strong as they used to in the immediately previous years.
