JLL and iO Partners have announced today that JLL will transfer its existing Leasing, Capital Markets, Valuations Advisory, Consulting and Project Management delivery businesses to iO Partners in Romania, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.

The average price of older flats in the Czech Republic fell by nine percent year-on-year to CZK 82,351 per sqm (€3,510 per sqm), which brought an overall increase in sales by two-thirds compared to the previous year. However, Prague has seen the fewest sales of older apartments in four years. According to ČTK and HN.cz, this is the result of a study by the real estate group European Housing Services (EHS), which uses data from its founding members, Bezrealitky and Maxima Reality.

The frozen Czech residential real estate market experienced a minor shake-up when developer Central Group put fifty new apartments on the market in Prague's Harfa at a big discount. According to the developer, they were sold out in a few hours. The price was CZK 100,000 (€4,250) per sqm, a quarter cheaper than is usual in the locality and a third cheaper than the Prague average, writes Hn.cz.

The latest data from Q1 2023 show a recovery of the new flats market in Prague. Quarter-on-quarter, sales increased by almost a fifth. The mortgage market, which has also seen a rally in recent months, but also the return of investors, will have an impact on further developments. Neither offer nor sale prices have changed significantly compared to the previous period. This is mainly due to persistently high construction costs, slow permitting of new construction and temporary postponement of some planned projects, according to the market analysis of development companies Trigema, Skanska and Central Group.

Developer activity in the Prague office market in Q1 2023 was still below the pre-pandemic level. As a result, only about 145,000 sqm of office space is under construction and no new construction has even started in recent months, according to the latest report by the Prague Research Forum, whose members include CBRE, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, JLL, Knight Frank and Savills.

One of the biggest transactions of the year in the Czech real estate market is about to take place. Negotiations for the sale of the OC Letňany shopping centre are supposedly ongoing in Prague. After six years, the German owner of the shopping centre is considering selling the property, writes HN.cz, as confirmed by two sources from the Central European M&A market.

A new industrial building has been constructed in CTPark Prague West near Prague, which holds a record 92.1% ‘BREEAM New Construction’ sustainability certification score of ‘Outstanding’, making it the ‘greenest’ industrial building in the Czech Republic. The warehouse, which was built under strict environmental measures, features a range of innovative solutions contributing to energy efficiency, as well as facilities to support local animals, abundant greenery, and a charging station for electric vehicles.

UBM Development Czechia has launched the construction and sale of Timber Prague apartments. The first wooden multi-storey apartment buildings in modern history are being built in Prague. Timber Praha is being developed within the Arcus City residential complex and offers 62 apartment units in modern multi-storey wooden buildings made of solid wood panels, UBM announced.

During the first quarter of 2023, the volume of investment in commercial real estate exceeded €477 million, a result that far exceeded initial expectations. The reason for these positive figures is a single large transaction into the retail property portfolio, which accounts for the majority of the total quarterly investment volume. This transaction is the reason why most of the funds in the past quarter went to the retail segment. Domestic investors were the most active last quarter, accounting for an unprecedented 87% of the total, according to Knight Frank's analysis of the Czech commercial real estate market.

Logicor continues expanding in the Czech Republic when it acquired a 100,000 sqm brownfield close to Prague, further strengthening its presence in this crucial market and nearly doubling its footprint.