Union Investment has sold the 18,000 sqm office property Krisztina Palace in Budapest. The property was acquired in 2008 as a development project and has been part of the portfolio of the open-end real estate fund Unilmmo: Global ever since. The property has been purchased by the Erste Open-Ended Real Estate Investment Fund, managed by Erste Asset Management, the asset management arm of Erste Group. CBRE brokered the transaction and the legal firm CMS provided legal advice. 

Total real estate investment in Europe reached €74 billion in Q2 2017, representing a 25% increase on the same period last year, according to CBRE. Central Europe as a region proves to be more attractive to international investors than last year with Hungary accounting 15% of the overall investment volume.

Mint Investments, a Central European real estate investment & asset manager acquired the International Business Center (IBC) in Prague on behalf of a syndicate of private investors. The buyer was AEW Europe, a multi-national real estate asset manager, with over €60 billion of assets under management. AEW was advised by CBRE, Havel, Holásek & Partners and Mazars. Mint Investments were advised by Mareš Partners and EY.

After entering the Hungarian market in 2016, M7 Real Estate has chosen the Budapest office of CBRE to manage the entire Hungarian real estate portfolio within the M7 CEREF I Fund. 

According to its analysis of the Czech industrial & logistics market, CBRE monitors a significant increase in end-user demand and resulting developer and construction activity in the still relatively unestablished location of Northwest Bohemia. Combined with already strong activity in West Bohemia, the region of West Northwest Bohemia currently represents the most active region in the terms of construction activity for the first time in history and even outpacing the Greater Prague Region. The West Northwest Bohemia region will be a driver of new supply in 2017 and together with the Greater Prague area will account for approximately 80% of newly to be delivered space in the Czech Republic in 2017.

After acquiring the Campona and Pólus shopping centres in Budapest, CPI Property Group has again entrusted CBRE to manage its new properties. CBRE has also been selected as the exclusive leasing agency for the two malls.

Cresco Group’s latest development in Bratislava, UNIQ Staromestská has received its final inspection certificate. The building consists of three underground and seven above-ground floors. It offers 7,656 sqm of office space, complemented with retail facilities and storage areas covering 917 sqm. 

According to CBRE, it is very likely that business deals in the Hungarian investment property market in 2017 will reach last year’s €1.54 billion (HUF480 billion) turnover.

CBRE sees continuing strong demand from investors in the Czech Republic across the core sectors of office, retail and industrial with an increased demand for more specialist sectors such as hotels and residential. The retail sector in Q1 clearly dominated with more than €900 million transacted, followed by the office sector with a 20% share of total market volume.

The Váci Road office corridor, the central business district (CBD) and the inner quarters of Pest are the most significant office locations in Budapest. The Budapest office of CBRE has synchronized its office market database with the metro lines and stations to highlight the current status of the city’s office market.