Hungary's commercial real estate investment volume reached €610 million in the first half of 2026, a 26.7% year-on-year increase and the strongest first-half result since 2021, according to Colliers Hungary. Domestic buyers accounted for 74% of activity. The office sector led with a 37.9% share, followed by retail at 32.9% and industrial and logistics at 18.5%. Prime yields held steady at 6.50% for offices, 7.00% for shopping centres and 6.75% for industrial assets. Based on the transaction pipeline, full-year volume could exceed €1.2 billion.
The macroeconomic backdrop has improved, with GDP growth forecast at 1.6–1.8% for 2026 and 2.5–3.0% for 2027. Following elections, the five-year CDS spread fell from 115 to around 68 basis points, the yield on the ten-year government bond dropped by approximately 200 basis points, and the forint strengthened by roughly 10% against the euro. "The more favourable risk and financing environment is one of the most important prerequisites for the recovery of real estate investment activity," said Balázs Zelles-Görgey, Director and Head of Capital Markets at Colliers. Geopolitical tensions and energy price risks remain, however, and construction output was 4.3% below year-earlier levels in the January–May period.
The Budapest office market is stabilising, with vacancy edging down to 12.2% and net absorption turning positive at 42,302 sqm, according to Miklós Ecsődi, Partner and Head of Occupier Services at Colliers. Total leasing volume reached 215,042 sqm, up 1% year on year, though net demand fell 42.9% to 57,644 sqm as renewals dominated activity. Only 110,012 sqm of speculative office space is scheduled for delivery by end-2028, with nearly 87% of the pipeline concentrated along the Váci Corridor. Prime rents stand at €25.5 per sqm per month.
In the industrial and logistics sector, Budapest recorded negative net absorption of -33,607 sqm, while regional locations posted a positive 153,976 sqm, with development activity shifting towards Western Hungary along the M1 motorway corridor, noted Tamás Beck, Partner and Head of Industrial and Logistics at Colliers. Leasing activity in Budapest reached 367,922 sqm in H1, with ten transactions each exceeding 10,000 sqm and a combined volume of nearly 200,000 sqm. Nationwide, 246,395 sqm of new space was completed. Budapest vacancy rose to 14.8% from 12.8% in 2025, while regional vacancy increased to 10.5% from 8.6%.
The retail market is supported by real wage growth of 12.6%, inflation of 1.8% and a 4.6% rise in retail sales between January and May, Anita Csörgő, Director and Head of Retail at Colliers, noted. Prime rents on Fashion Street reached €230 per sqm per month, up approximately 48% since early 2024, while Váci Street recorded approximately €200 per sqm per month. New international entrants include Lululemon and Rituals, and vacancy continued to fall on both prime and secondary shopping streets. The key future retail development is Duna Mall, planned on the site of the current Duna Plaza with a target completion of 2029. Colliers expects the investment market recovery to continue over the next 12–24 months, with domestic and Central and Eastern European capital leading activity before a broader return of international investors.
