As a response to continued strong demand from tenants in Budapest and Bucharest, Skanska plans to launch several new projects in both capital cities. Marcin Łapiński, Managing Director for Hungary and Romania talked to Property Forum about the differences between the two markets.

Strong economic growth, booming tourism and increasing construction activity characterise one of the least well-known markets of the CEE/SEE region. Total office stock in the capital barely exceeds 100,000 sqm, which results in one of the highest rental fees in the region. The situation is, however, about to change as new mixed-use projects of higher quality should increase the pressure on landlords. Stela Dhami, Managing Partner at Colliers International shared us her positive outlook on the Albanian market.

CBRE Global Investors have been one of the most active buyers on the CEE investment market recently. Having closed the off-market acquisition of a logistics/light industrial portfolio in the Czech Republic, Robert Snincak, Head of Investment Operations CEE talked to Property Forum about CBRE Global Investors’ investment strategy for the region.

The increased use of technology is already changing the way industrial property is being built and used. Tim Davies, Head of EMEA Industrial and Logistics Agency at Colliers International United Kingdom talked to Property Forum about e-commerce, robotics, big data and many more.

The growth of e-commerce is transforming the retail market all over the world. Experts don’t believe that physical stores will completely disappear but owners of developers of retail assets will need to come up with new ideas in order to attract customers. Jan Kotrbáček, Head of Retail Agency CEE at Cushman & Wakefield analysed the CEE retail market for Property Forum.

The recently appointed CEO of HB Reavis Hungary firmly believes that new office developments should focus on employee wellbeing and he thinks that tenants will be ready to pay higher rental fees for extra services that will help decrease their turnover. Jan Hübner talked to Property Forum about his expectations for the future of the Hungarian market and about Agora Budapest, the company’s major new development in the capital.

The Romanian market has attracted strong interest from international investors in recent years. Solid economic growth, improving perception and the availability of quality investment products have all contributed to the €400 million transaction volume registered in 2017. Andrei Văcaru, Associate Director of Capital Markets at JLL Romania explained Property Forum why Romania is on the right track.

The CEO of TriGranit is still optimistic for 2017 on the Budapest property market, but he expects some kind of correction in the coming years. The question is: will this correction take place in the form of a market stabilisation or will it bring on a significant downturn? Árpád Török talked to Property Forum about TriGranit’s plans for new developments and acquisitions.

Increasing political risk on a global level has helped investors look past country risks associated with CEE markets and focus on strong fundamentals coupled with solid economic growth. Jeff Alson, Partner and Head of CEE Investment Team at Cushman & Wakefield talked to Property Forum about his expectations for the investment market.

The office markets of Central European capitals are growing dynamically: the number of new leases is on the rise, vacancy rates have hit record lows in several cities and demand for large office space is also growing. In light of all this it is no surprise that development activity is also heating up on the most popular markets of the region. We asked three major office developers to tell us which city in the region offers the most attractive development opportunities, how tenants’ requirements are changing and what makes Central European capitals different.