HB Reavis has gained planning consent for its next new major development, Agora Budapest, situated next to city’s busiest boulevard and the Váci Road office corridor. Construction on the first building called Agora Hub has already commenced. Agora Budapest will be built in several phases and will comprise more than 136,000 sqm of modern office spaces and retail units by 2023. The project will require an investment of approximately HUF140 billion (€447 million).

Immofinanz introduces its international office brand myhive to the Hungarian market, to be implemented in five of its office buildings in Budapest. The Greenpoint 7 and Haller Gardens have already become myhive Greenpoint 7 and myhive Haller Gardens, after a transformation process through which the properties’ common areas now offer an extended service range and improved infrastructure to encourage socialization. Plans call for the myhive concept to also be rolled-out at Átrium Park to become myhive Átrium Park, Globe 13 and Xenter 13 buildings to become myhive Thirteen.

Luxembourg-based Rubik Ventures has sold an office building in the 11th district of Budapest to Videoton Group. The property, located on Bocskay Road, has 5,000 sqm of GLA and is fully leased to Colas Hungaria Zrt. 

Futureal Group’s Advance Tower is getting closer to becoming the first office building in Hungary obtaining the Well Building Standard (WELL) certification. The International Well Building Institute’s system examines buildings’ impact on human body, health and environment and rates them based on 7 categories – air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort and mind. The pre-qualification process of Advance Tower that will be built on Váci Road has already started. All further office projects of Futureal Group will be realized in line with the requirements of the Well Building international standard. 

Atenor announced the sale of the third building of its Váci Greens campus in Budapest to Hungarian real-estate fund OTP Prime Ingatlanbefektetesi Alap. Building B contains 25,300 sqm of office space and 399 basement parking spaces. The structure was completed in March 2016 and is currently 65% leased. 

Even though all figures available as well as market sentiment point to further growth on the Hungarian commercial property market, its players still keep looking over their shoulders for potential threats to this growth. According to the speakers of the Portfolio - RICS Valuation and Investment 2017 conference, global politics and potentially rising interest rates pose the biggest threat for CEE. We report from Budapest. 

Colliers REMS Hungary has been assigned the role of Center Manager including the operational management of the in total 220,000 sqm KÖKI Terminál shopping mall. The assignment also includes the management and technical support of tenant fitting out works.

CA Immo has concluded rental agreements for around 12,000 sqm of office space in Budapest. The agreements include new rentals as well as contract extensions and expansions of existing tenants.

TriGranit, celebrating its 20th anniversary in business in 2017, will this year launch its newest development in Budapest, the Millennium Gardens office building that will provide 37,000 sqm GLA for future tenants from H2 2019 on the banks of the Danube, next to MÜPA and the prospective Congress Centre. In 2017, the company also plans to start the development of Building H, the eighth building in its office complex in Krakow, Bonarka for Business (B4B), providing 10,000 sqm GLA, and plans to start the second phase of Lakeside Park in Slovakia with 13,000 sqm GLA. 

All segments of the Hungarian commercial property market have shown signs of strong growth over the last couple of years. Developers embark on a record number of new projects, but most of them soon realise that construction will take more time and be a lot more costly than they initially anticipated. The latest Tea & Talk session, organised by RICS Hungary in Budapest, helped us understand how rising construction costs and labour shortage in construction can be tackled.