In the second half of last year, gross take-up decreased in the two largest regional office markets of the Czech Republic. The Regional Research forum announced the Brno and Ostrava office market figures for H2 2018. 

Immofinanz has purchased the remaining 50% of the Na Příkopě 14 building in Prague from Lordship and become the sole owner. The revitalised historic prime high street building, located on the prestigious Prague shopping street in the city centre, is almost 100% occupied. The parties to this transaction have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

Cushman & Wakefield has mapped the office property market in detail and made a chart of the largest owners and the most active developers of office buildings in the main markets of the Czech Republic. At this point, there is 4.23 million sqm of office space in the Czech Republic. CPI Group is the biggest owner with 22 properties taking up 5% of the total area. The three biggest office owners in Prague control about 15% of the entire market. Penta Investments has been the most active developer over the course of the last ten years.

Conseq Group’s Conseq Realitní investment fund has bought the A7 Office Center in Prague from Revetas. The purchase price has not been disclosed. The 16,000 sqm building is located in the Czech capital’s Holešovice district. The list of tenants includes Czech News Center, Ahold Czech Republic, DM Drugerie and Megapixel.

Cromwell Property Group has completed the sale of the Pohořelice Industrial Park to an undisclosed buyer for an undisclosed sum. The 44,444 sqm complex, which is situated about 27 km south of Brno, comprises a logistics building, a fully-refurbished cross-dock building and a workshop together with an assembly unit. The asset formed part of the Cromwell European Industrial Fund (CEIF) portfolio.

According to JLL, CEE's real estate investment transactional volume for 2018 was in excess of €13.23 billion and recorded an 11% increase over 2017 (€11.92 billion). JLL has registered continued appetite from investors for the full range of assets across the entire region. Poland smashed its previous record volume set in 2006 (€5.05 billion) with a spectacular €7.2 billion traded, and secured a massive regional share of 54%. Poland was followed by the Czech Republic (€2.51 billion - 19% share), Hungary (€1.85 billion - 14%), Romania (€900 million - 7%) and Slovakia (€820 million - 6%).

CTP is starting 2019 with the announcement of ambitious development plans in three of its markets, the Czech Republic, Serbia and Hungary.

Bluehouse completed the acquisition of Novodvorska Plaza shopping centre in Prague. CBRE represented the buyer in the off-market acquisition of the 25,000 sqm shopping centre.

ZFP Investments has sold the Florenc Office Center, commonly known as the KPMG HQ building, in Prague, to Shinhan Investment Corp, a Korean based investment manager. CBRE represented the vendor in the sale of the asset. The transaction constitutes the first direct real estate investment in the Czech Republic by a Korean investor.

Erik Drukker, who previously served as the Managing Director, Agency & Valuation, Central & Eastern Europe, has become a Member of the Board at the Polish and Czech entities of BNP Paribas Real Estate. He took his new post at the turn of November and December.