The first quarter of 2025 has been marked by extraordinary activity on the Czech commercial real estate market. According to Colliers, total investment volume reached €1.48 billion, already surpassing the full-year 2023 results of €1.15 billion. Several large transactions with a value above €100 million contributed to this record.
„Several important transactions were concluded in the first quarter of this year. Most of them had been discussed and anticipated for several months, but some flew under the radar and went almost unnoticed until they were announced," says Josef Stanko, Director of Market Research at Colliers.
One of the most significant transactions during the first quarter was the acquisition of Contera/TPG's industrial portfolio in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. This transaction was significant not only because of its volume of approximately €370 million (for the Czech part), but also because the buyer was Blackstone, one of the world's largest real estate investors.
Another significant transaction involved the acquisition of Hilton Prague, the largest hotel in Prague with 791 rooms, by the Czech investment group PPF. With a value of over €250 million, this was the largest ever single transaction for the purchase of a hotel in Central and Eastern Europe.
Redstone Real Estate Group, which invested more than €300 million in two mixed-use properties on the Prague market, also has some activities worth mentioning. It acquired Myslbek (a major office building with a commercial arcade on Na Příkopě Street in the centre of Prague) from AEW, and Atrium Flora (an established shopping centre with an adjacent office complex in Prague 3) from G City Europe.
The yield environment remained stable in the first quarter of this year. At the end of the quarter, yields on prime office properties stood at 5.50% and on prime industrial properties at 5.25%. In the retail sector, yields on prime shopping centre properties were 4.50%, yields on prime shopping centre properties were 6.00%, and yields on prime retail parks were 6.25%. This stability has been key in balancing price expectations between buyers and sellers, which in turn has led to more deals being closed.
Investment growth was not only evident in the Czech Republic but across the entire Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region. Except the residential sector, all sectors recorded an increase in investment in Q1 2025. Industry and logistics led the way with €800 million, triple the amount of last year's figure and regaining the top spot after 2024.
Retail came second in investment volume, growing 38% year-on-year but slower than in 2024. While rising spending power is supporting this sector, changing consumer habits, price sensitivity, and high interest rates are changing retail investment trends in CEE.
The office sector has also seen a strong recovery, with investment volumes more than tripling year-on-year. Growth was particularly strong in Bulgaria (+806%) and the Czech Republic (+618%). In the hotel sector, investment volumes increased almost ninefold: well above the five-year trend.
