The number of property deals and the volumes transacted plunged in Q4 2022 in comparison to the final quarter of 2021 in major EMEA markets due to higher interest rates and financing costs amid surging inflation. However, property investment will resume its growth path this year, as the inflation and interest rates become more stable, says Colliers.

According to Michael Klien from WIFO (the Austrian Euroconstruct member institute), 2022 was the second year of recovery for the European construction industry after the outbreak of the pandemic. The year-on-year growth rates of 3% were, however, much lower than in 2021 (+5.8%) owing to the sharp rise in construction costs, Euroconstruct reports in its latest press release.

The upward trend in prime rents continues across European industrial and logistics projects due to steady demand for space, according to Garbe Research. The average rental growth for the main markets stood at €0.40 per sqm. 

Hospitality group Accor has signed 47 properties in Eastern Europe and the ‘New East’ in 2022, going as far as Georgia and Kazakhstan for a total of 5,476 rooms. 

Property groups Immofinanz and S Immo said they are reviewing further alignment, coordination, merger or other forms of integration, with CPI Property Group (CPIPG) as supporting shareholder. 

A key challenge facing many real estate corporates, who historically have been reliant on the bond markets, is the quantum of near-term maturities. This includes the Nordics where JLL estimates circa 32% of real estate corporate bonds are due to mature within the next 2 years. 

Recent data from Arnold Investments show that around €152 billion was transacted on the EU real estate investment markets in the first three quarters of 2022. Year-on-year, this represents a decline of around 4% due to a strong first quarter. However, investment activity slowed down sharply in the course of the year. At roughly 39 billion, the transaction volume for the third quarter was around 39% lower than in the previous year. The main EU investment markets analyzed show a significant decline in transaction volumes both over the course of the year and in the third quarter.

According to Savills, investment into industrial assets in Europe has continued to reflect the strong performance of the sector’s occupational market. European investment volumes into industrial real estate assets totalled €42 billion over the first three quarters of 2022, an increase of 2% YoY and 50% above the five-year average. Investment volumes in Portugal (595%), Belgium (124%) and Italy (93%) outperformed their five-year averages by the widest margins.

Savills Investment Management has outlined its global outlook for real estate investment markets in 2023. While next year may prove challenging for all investors, in the context of global market turbulence, Savills IM sees select opportunities in asset classes with strong long-term fundamentals such as urban industrial and logistics, affordable housing and essential retail.

Career and business development advisor PropertyTalents has put together a list of highlighted career opportunities currently available for real estate professionals for CEE in its portfolio.