Market players are highly optimistic about the future of CEE investments, but finding the right quality product can be a tough challenge. Our summary of Bratislava Property Forum 2018, co-organised by Property Forum and RICS.

According to data by JLL, the volume of office investment transactions concluded in Poland for 2017 was approx. €1.6 billion. A record-breaking €970 million of office investment deals was reported in major cities outside of Warsaw.

Although offices still comprise the majority of certified green buildings in Hungary, other types of properties are increasingly being certified, according to Colliers International’s latest green building market report.

With GDP growth outperforming by a significant extent neighbouring CEE countries, 2017 was very good for the real estate market in Romania, especially for office, investment and land segments. According to Colliers International’s new report, the market’s dynamism will be extended through 2018, supported by new demand and trends in the capital and especially in the major regional cities in the country.

The level of confidence in Central and Eastern European markets seems to have peaked according to the RICS Commercial Property Monitor. Expectations are still highly positive, but sentiment indices have topped out in the previous two quarters. Results for Q4 2017 demonstrate that both occupier and investment demand is still strong but the share of those who believe that some markets are close to peaking is growing steadily.

According to the latest analysis prepared by the Capital Markets team Cushman & Wakefield, investment volumes in Central and Eastern Europe reached nearly €13 billion in 2017. All CEE countries grew at a similar rate and maintained their share of the overall regional volume. Despite political risk perceptions, Poland grew most rapidly at 9% y-o-y from approx. €4.6 billion to €5 billion, which was the highest result recorded in the last 10 years. 2018 has already seen the benefit of deals that slipped from late 2017 with the investment volume in Q1 2018 likely to exceed €3 billion.

Colliers International, Automotive Cluster Bulgaria and Pwc conducted a second consecutive survey of the automotive industry in Bulgaria. There are approximately 130 automotive companies in the country, producing components for top international automotive brands. These are predominantly Tier 1, 2 and 3 suppliers and include producers, which service other industries as well.

Cushman & Wakefield Echinox assisted property transactions in Romania totalling over €300 million in 2017, accounting for 30% of the total local property investment volume of nearly €1 billion. The deals included projects such as Chitila Logistic Park, the Radisson Blu complex in Bucharest and two properties sold by REWE.

Economic sentiment indicators are still pointing towards further expansion in CEE-6 investment volumes in 2018, over and above 2017’s cycle high of €12.9 billion. The current economic and real estate investment cycle might top out in 2019. Colliers International has published its investment outlook for the CEE-6 real estate markets for 2018.

In 2017 the residential market took the lead in terms of land deals, recording all-time highs for both the number and value of sale/purchase contracts. The market for land suitable for office buildings and hotels also continued apace in 2017. The appetite of developers for new purchases was underlined by deals for several dozen properties throughout Poland, according to JLL.