The retail sector has been leading the investment activity in the first half of 2023 across CEE, having a share of 35% of the total volume of transactions that reached around €2.02 billion, according to a Colliers report.

The second quarter of 2023 in the Czech Republic was characterized by record industrial construction, with more than 60 percent of it already pre-leased. The vacancy rate rose slowly to the current 1.7 percent, indicating a prevailing market sentiment that sees speculative construction and a recent-record high amount of space under construction, according to the latest analysis by the Industrial Reserch Forum.

Property Forum is excited to join as Media Partner a free webinar organised by the Romania Green Building Council on the topic of "Investing in and Developing Successful Green/nZEB Building Projects in Romania". The goal of this interactive session is to both inform and gather useful feedback from real estate professionals on how to best accelerate a successful green economy transition.

The current results of the Polish investment market may not appear very optimistic at the moment, but this is only a temporary situation. The Polish real estate market has a solid foundation, and investors have proven to be highly adaptable, as evidenced by the results achieved in previous challenging years, reveals Avison Young's investment market summary for H1 2023, prepared by Research and Data Manager Paulina Brzeszkiewicz-Kuczyńska.

Sofia's office market faces shifting demand and moderating construction, according to a report by the real estate company MBL for the second quarter of 2023. Changing work patterns and preferences for hybrid models have raised concerns about the future demand for office space. The capital's vacancy rates decreased slightly, while rental rates remained stable. Investors are approaching the market with caution due to inflation and remote work practices. Despite the moderate activity, there is a potential for modern, well-located office spaces to attract higher occupancy and investment interest.

The Bulgarian residential market was growing at a slower pace in the first quarter of 2023, compared to the same period last year. On an annual basis, the increase was 9.5%, and 1.6% on a monthly basis. The data is part of the annual House Market Index by Eurostat on residential property prices and rents in the European Union.

The Hungarian Parliament voted in favour of the law on the public construction and investment regime with 136 votes in favour, 49 against and 9 abstentions. The law, among other things, makes the use of BIM mandatory for projects at or above the EU public procurement threshold, requires greater control over design and construction than before, and puts the whole life cycle of public works on a new footing.

The total industrial and logistics stock for the CEE-12 region has grown to exceed 65 million sqm, with 25 million sqm situated in and around the 12 capital city markets. Poland maintains the largest I&L market and is approaching the 30 million sqm mark, reveals a new report by Colliers.

In March-April 2023, the Ukrainian Real Estate Club conducted a survey of almost 100 representatives of Ukrainian companies that continue to operate in the market and do business during the war. Of course, all market participants, regardless of their region of operation, felt the negative economic consequences. Despite this, the market is rather optimistic and proactive, as evidenced by the survey results, Olga Solovei (URE Club) reports for Property Forum.

There is growing interest in mixed-use projects in the Czech Republic. These are spaces that combine offices, shops, housing, and various forms of social activities. Unfortunately, the construction of such spaces in the Czech Republic still lags behind that in neighbouring countries. The main reason for this is the very long building permitting processes. In Poland, for example, it takes only a few months to get a building permit, whereas here it usually takes years.