The Budapest office market enjoyed a dynamic year in terms of gross take-up, equating to nearly 535,000 sqm of office space transacted, effectively in line with the record year of 2015 which saw circa 538,000 sqm.

Last year an astonishing 860,000 sqm of office space was leased, with the vacancy rate dropping 8.7%, and new supply totalling 230,000 sqm. Currently, the total under-construction volume stands at 720,000 sqm. JLL summarised the Warsaw office market in 2018.

Codic International, a Brussels-based developer, announced that construction has commenced on the office component of Green Court, their latest mixed-use development to be realized in partnership with the Hungarian Pesti Házak and the Austrian Venta Group. The project is located in Budapest on the Váci office corridor. The project incorporates Green Court Office, a 21,000 sqm GLA premium office development, and Green Court Residence, comprising two residential buildings with 275 apartments. The apartments will be occupied by the end of this year, and the office project is scheduled to be handed over in Q4 2020. Colliers International and Jones Lang LaSalle have been appointed co-exclusive leasing agents for the office development.

Total demand on the Budapest office market reached 171,490 sqm in Q4 2018, representing a 19% growth year-on-year. The office vacancy rate stands at 7.3%, representing a 90 basis points increase quarter-on-quarter and a 20 basis points reduction year-on-year. The Budapest Research Forum published its latest figures.

In early October 2018, Cushman & Wakefield was appointed a property manager for Proximo II, an office building in Warsaw. The owner of the complex is ČS nemovitostní fond, the largest open-ended Czech investment fund managed by REICO.

Służewiec, a district in Warsaw and one of the largest and most prominent business districts in Poland, currently offers nearly 1.1 million sqm of modern office space. According to recent estimates, there is approx. 87,000 office personnel employed in the area. As the needs of staff and residents of the city change, there is a groundswell of opinion suggesting that this part of Warsaw needs a new strategy and a fresh action plan. What activities would contribute to the improved functioning and more favorable perception of this district as well as maintaining its attractiveness as a key business hub?

From the beginning of January, Knight Frank has been appointed a property manager of the Kliwer office building located in Mokotow in Warsaw. Currently, the property is fully rented.

Golub GetHouse and Mennica Polska S.A. obtained financing for subsequent stages of the construction of Mennica Legacy Tower in Warsaw. More than €130 million of construction credit was granted by a consortium of three banks.

Just before the end of 2018, GTC S.A. signed €94.6 million new loan agreements certifying the financial solidity of the company. The refinancing was granted to three prime projects of the developer and asset manager – GTC White House in Budapest, FortyOne in Belgrade, and Artico in Warsaw.

CTP completed the first three buildings in its brownfield redevelopment project Vlněna, located in central Brno. FGH, a complex of three buildings offering some 18,000 sqm, is already largely leased.