SEE Property Forum 2017, a real estate conference co-organised by Property Forum and RICS, has been held for the third time in Bucharest. 50 speakers and more than 200 visitors came together in the capital to analyse the potential of the Romanian real estate market from a global perspective.

Skanska has sold Maraton, an office building located in Poznan, Poland, for €62 million. The property has been acquired by a real estate fund managed by Union Investment. It is the second sales transaction between Skanska and Union Investment in the Polish regional markets. The first sale between the two companies was Dominikanski in Wroclaw. Maraton is Skanska's second office project in Poznan following Malta House.

Diófa Asset Management has purchased the South Pest Business Park from Wing Zrt. The new owner is Magyar Posta Takarék Property Investment Fund, which is Hungary's second largest domestic open-ended fund. The city logistics scheme, located in the 9th district, is 90% occupied.  The South Pest Business Park was transacted for app. €29.1 million (HUF9 billion).

London has been ranked as the most attractive European city for real estate investment for the sixth consecutive year, according to CBRE’s annual Investor Intentions Survey being launched at MIPIM 2017. At 6th place Warsaw is the most attractive CEE city among investors. Prague placed 8th, with Budapest (10th) and Bucharest (14th) also making in the top 15. 

Spanish investment fund, Azora Europa l, has sold Galleries Louvre, their prime office property in Prague 5, to Redstone Real Estate, a private equity platform. The counterparties agreed not to disclose the price. The property is a mid-sized office building offering approximately 4,800 sqm of prime administrative space and is fully and long-term let.  

Budapest was among the 50+ cities that showcased its strengths and potential to real estate professionals at MIPIM 2017 with an emphasis on new developments and investment opportunities. Two panel discussions were held during the first two days of the event, both of them moderated by Portfolio Property Forum, the media partner of the Budapest stand. Here are some takeaways from the first two days in Cannes. 

Echo Investment has sold West Link to Griffin Premium RE, a new platform created by Griffin Real Estate. The companies have just signed preliminary agreements as a result of which Griffin Premium RE will control and ultimately purchase the Wrocław-based office building West Link and invest into Echo Investment’s commercial projects in Warsaw – Beethovena and Browary Warszawskie.

Whilst 2017’s volumes from South Africa are not likely to match 2016’s records, the numbers from Asia could well match or exceed last year’s, given the large number of potential sources that capital can hail from in that vast, deep and liquid arena. Asian investors see CEE as a risky higher return diversification opportunity compared to Western Europe according to the report released at MIPIM from Colliers International.

Vienna-based investment manager GalCap Europe has acquired Merkúr Palota (the Mercure Palace), a fully renovated office building in Budapest. The seller is a private investor; both parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

Echo Polska Properties NV (EPP) and Echo Investment are buying Galeria Młociny in Warsaw from Rosehill Investments. The companies will pay nearly €42 million (including the liabilities of the company being the subject of the transaction) for the project which is already under construction.