Following years of turmoil in retail, 2022 will bring rental growth and increased investment capital to the sector across Europe, according to Savills.

Warehouse occupiers are prioritising the shortening of supply chains to mitigate business risks, a trend that is likely to dominate the demand for warehouse space in Europe for the next three years, reports Savills and Tritax EuroBox plc, a leading investor in European logistics real estate. According to Savills, Poland becomes a target for larger Foreign Direct Investment facilities.

ULI Poland and PWC name cybersecurity and inflation within top wider concerns for 2022. Best investment prospects are in London, Paris and 4 German cities, Warsaw with a “good” outlook took 15th place in the "Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2022" report by both companies.

Residential investment sectors are gaining traction across Europe, with the volume of capital targeting student accommodation, the private rented sector and purpose-built age-targeted housing continuing to rise, according to Knight Frank’s European Residential Investment Survey 2022.

Savills Investment Management has published its latest outlook report for real estate investment markets in 2022. While next year may mark a turning point for both office and retail investment as the world continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, sectors such as living, logistics and real estate debt also look set offer compelling opportunities.

Flex office provider Mindspace secured a funding of $72 million. The investment round is intended to support the continuation of the company's growth and its further expansion in Europe, the United States and Israel. The round was led by Harel Insurance Investments and Financial Services Ltd., More Provident Funds, Arkin Holdings and existing investors. Existing investors include Yoav Harlap, Kobi Rogovin and Globalworth.

VGP, a European provider of high-quality logistics and semi-industrial real estate, published a trading update for the first ten months of 2021.

Analysis of 44 key office markets in EMEA showed a 155,000 sqm increase in the total amount of flex workspace, according to Colliers. This increase equates to 25,000 extra desks. Contributing to this increase was the addition of 285,000 sqm of newly opened space, but this was offset by 130,000 sqm of space that closed and a further 23,000 sqm that was abandoned. However, nearly a third of the space that closed was due to WeWork streamlining its business in key European locations such as Barcelona, Copenhagen, London and Oslo.

The European Central Bank has highlighted growing vulnerabilities in housing markets and stretched financial asset valuations in its Financial Stability Review for November 2021. The ECB has also warned of an increased likelihood of a correction in both residential and commercial real estate markets.

Data centres remain one of the fastest growing real estate segments as the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated favourable secular trends, but developers and investors looking for high yields and promising stable cash flows face specific risks. Scope Ratings says managing the risks, particularly those related to energy and the environment, has become particularly challenging today.