Romania's commercial real estate sector accounts for 54% of loans granted to non-financial companies and recorded a 15% annual increase in financing, according to an analysis by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox based on data from the National Bank of Romania (NBR). At the end of March 2026, credit institutions' exposure to the sector reached RON 116 billion, up 15% year-on-year.

Commercial real estate can serve a far more significant purpose than simply providing operational premises. For many manufacturing, logistics and industrial businesses, it has become an integral component of capital structure and a source of growth financing. The sale and leaseback (SLB) model — whereby a company sells a property whilst simultaneously entering into a long-term lease for the same asset — enables occupiers to unlock capital embedded in their real estate whilst maintaining uninterrupted operations, and offers investors access to income-generating assets underpinned by long-term cash flows.

The Prague Research Forum — comprising CBRE, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, iO Partners, Knight Frank and Savills — has published its office market figures for Q2 2026. Total modern office stock reached 3.95 million sqm at the end of the quarter, following the completion of the refurbished Danube House in Prague 8 (19,900 sqm). Total office deliveries for 2026 are expected to amount to 36,700 sqm, with only one further project — 8,200 sqm of refurbished space — scheduled for completion before year-end.

Romania's modern retail stock reached 4,859,000 sqm by the end of Q2 2026, with retail parks accounting for approximately 23% of this area. Deliveries in H1 2026 totalled 84,000 sqm, including the expansion of Arena Mall Bacău, Phase 1 of Urbano Shopping & Living in Cluj-Napoca, and new retail parks in Oradea, Breaza, Bran, and Brașov. A further 68,000 sqm are under construction with delivery scheduled for H2 2026, including ARIA Shopping Centre, One Gallery, and Cometex retail parks, bringing the estimated full-year total to 152,000 sqm. Looking further ahead, nearly 300,000 sqm of new space is in the planning and construction phase for 2027–2028, with major projects including the 120,000 sqm mixed-use Rivus project in Cluj-Napoca, expansions of Promenada Mall Bucharest and Palas Iași, and M Park Galați.

EastGate 2026, taking place in Iași on 15-16 September, is a new international forum designed to connect investors, developers, financial institutions, public authorities and business leaders across Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. Property Forum is delighted to announce the North-East Regional Development Agency (ADR Nord-Est) as an Institutional Partner of EastGate 2026.

The modern industrial and logistics sectors in Central and Eastern Europe are navigating a highly complex macroeconomic environment. Globally, industry consumes 24% of total energy1, and in an era of volatile utility prices, energy efficiency has shifted from a corporate social responsibility initiative to an operational imperative. Simultaneously, facility and plant managers grapple with continuous operational risks. Industry data reveals that the average manufacturing plant loses between 5% and 20% of its annual productivity to unplanned downtime2 – an issue that 90% of manufacturers rank as their top operational threat. Faced with persistent skilled labour shortages and an ageing workforce, industrial operators must fundamentally rethink their infrastructure strategy to secure long-term competitiveness.

Investment in commercial real estate in the Czech Republic exceeded €1 billion in Q2 2026, up 121% quarter-on-quarter and 47% year-on-year. For the first half of the year, total volume reached €1.47 billion. According to Knight Frank's analysis, full-year investment could approach €3 billion, keeping the market above its long-term average.

Morizon-Gratka Group has published the first edition of its "Consumer Sentiment Barometer for the Property Market", a quarterly index measuring how consumers feel about the Polish property market. The barometer scored 66 points on a 100-point scale, placing it in positive territory above the neutral threshold of 50 points. The survey was conducted at the end of Q2 2026 and gathered responses from nearly 9,000 people active in the property market.

Poland's property investment market recorded €3 billion in total volume across 66 transactions in H1 2026, up 77% year-on-year and matching the highest levels seen in the country over the past decade. Every sector recorded deals exceeding €100 million, with the single largest transaction — €575 million — completed in the private rented sector (PRS). Core investors are returning to prime assets, pushing average ticket sizes up while overall liquidity remains lower than in H1 2025.

The Polish Chamber of Commercial Real Estate (PINK) has published figures on the Warsaw office market for Q2 2026. The data is sourced from advisory companies including Avison Young, Axi Immo, BNP Paribas Real Estate Poland, CBRE, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, JLL, Knight Frank, Newmark Polska and Savills, and covers modern office stock, new completions, take-up volumes and vacancy rates.