There are still fewer leased and built offices than two years ago, but there is an upward trend in the office sector. Last year, some regional markets saw a sizable increase in demand, even compared to 2019, Walter Herz reports.

Premium rents in Prague to rise and interesting incentives from landlords are expected. There is also a growing interest in office rents in Brno, which is responding to the growth in rents over the past two years. Premium rents also grew slightly in Ostrava. Leasing activity in Bratislava is keeping pace with new construction and, together with Vienna, is expecting a recovery. In Warsaw, upward pressure on premium rents will grow, but there is likely to be an easing of existing incentives for tenants. Budapest is gradually recovering from the covid crisis. Rents will remain stable this year, reports CBRE.

Wola Center, the office building in Warsaw acquired by the Hines European Value Fund (HEVF 1) in 2020, and subsequently managed by global real estate firm Hines, has received a BREEAM In-Use Excellent certification.

GTC has handed over the Pillar office building in Budapest which will almost fully be occupied by ExxonMobil. This BTS project was the biggest pre-lease ever (29,000 sqm) on the Hungarian office market.

Colliers published a survey of the Prague office market for Q4 2021. It shows that the vacancy rate stopped rising last year due to weak construction and rents rose to a new high. The market with modern office space will not increase significantly even in 2022.

As Romania has eliminated all pandemic restrictions earlier this week, companies plan to increase the number of employees returning to the office in the near future. 

AFI Europe Romania says that all its office portfolio comprising seven projects has received the Well Health-Safety Certification.  

Czech investment company REICO investiční společnost České spořitelny, a.s. (REICO IS ČS) as of February has appointed Savills as property manager for its Prague office complex Bořislavka. Savills will work in cooperation with Active Retail Asset Management (ARAM) who will manage the retail scheme within the asset.  

Europa Capital and ConvergenCE have announced the new brand identity of the recently acquired Akadémia Business Center in the heart of Budapest. Alongside the launch of the refurbishment works, the riverside building will be rechristened Academia, as a vital part of its transformation and repositioning.

With six new office buildings slated for delivery this year, the leasable stock will grow by 135,700 sqm, which is the lowest level since 2017, according to real estate consultancy CBRE.