The Prague office market has experienced a decline in the construction of new office buildings over the last three quarters which has also been reflected in a decline in speculative construction. Whereas a year ago almost 80% of offices under construction did not have a secure tenant, this share has now fallen to 52%. Tenants were looking for office space in established office locations in the vicinity of Karlín in Prague 8 and Pankrác in Prague 4 in the first quarter. A quarterly analysis by international consultancy JLL shows that 7.5% of modern office space in Prague is currently vacant, which corresponds to 289,100 sqm of space. However, the supply of so-called subleases, which are not included in the official vacancy register, is also growing. According to JLL's latest analysis, there could be around 80,000 sqm of sublease space.

International Workplace Group has announced two new locations in Sofia. This brings their portfolio to fifth workspaces in the capital, seven in Bulgaria. One of the locations is at the European Trade Center and the other is the Regus Labirint Center in the Lyulin district

Romanian developer Iulius has inaugurated Palas Campus, the biggest office building in Romania with a total leasable area of 60,000 sqm, of which 54,000 sqm are offices and the rest retail premises. The project was completed in three years following an investment of more than €120 million. 

According to a new report published by Newmark Polska, the first three months of 2023 saw no new office completions in Warsaw as occupier activity weakened and the capital’s vacancy rate remained flat compared to the previous quarter. Developers are, however, commencing or planning new office projects in the city.

The Polish Chamber of Commercial Real Estate (PINK) has published figures summarizing office market in eight major regional markets in Poland (Kraków, Wrocław, the Tri-City, Katowice, Poznań, Łódź, Lublin, Szczecin) for Q1 2023. The data is sourced from advisory companies from the commercial real estate sector (BNP Paribas Real Estate, CBRE, Colliers, Cushman&Wakefield, JLL, Knight Frank, Newmark Polska, Savills) and includes information on existing modern office stock, new completions, take-up volumes and vacancy rates.

Ghelamco has become a member of the Partnership for Climate program initiated by the City of Warsaw.

Hungarian investment fund Adventum Group has achieved the Excellent rating in accordance with the BREEAM In-Use standard for green buildings certification for its Hermes Business Campus (HBC) office project based in Bucharest.

IWG, the owner of the Regus brand, has secured 1338 sqm of commercial space in the newest large residential complex in Hungary’s rapidly developing regional city, Szeged. Regus Cédrus Liget Offices will offer serviced spaces for smaller and startup companies.

Developer activity in the Prague office market in Q1 2023 was still below the pre-pandemic level. As a result, only about 145,000 sqm of office space is under construction and no new construction has even started in recent months, according to the latest report by the Prague Research Forum, whose members include CBRE, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, JLL, Knight Frank and Savills.

No new office completions were noted in Warsaw during the first quarter of 2023, with office take-up falling by 40%. Key challenges facing office tenants hoping for an economic turnaround, as forecast by real estate advisory firm Savills, include a substantial increase in service charges which are expected to rise by 30-60%, depending on the type and class of an office building.