Five metro lines and a tram network that will connect all 18 districts of Warsaw by 2050. These are the main elements of a new study for the expansion of rail transport in Warsaw, which was presented by the mayor of the city, Rafał Trzaskowski last week.

The effects of higher interest rates have yet to cause too much distress within the likes of the Prague market, says Richard Britten-Long, Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Českomoravská Nemovitostní, in an interview for Property Forum. He also talked about key market drivers, including ESG.

Investors in Poland are looking for projects that can ensure a good profit. Will we soon see a flood of investments based on changing the function of existing real estate on developed land? Piotr Szymoński, Director at Walter Herz tries to answer that question. 

LCP Properties has finalised the purchase of two retail projects to be built in Łochów and Iława, as well as an existing retail park in Ząbkowice Śląskie.

In 2021, the warehouse sector strongly dominated Poland's commercial real estate market in terms of volume. The value of transactions - approximately €3.2 billion - accounted for over half of the total value of investment transactions. In 2022, the sector's result - €2 billion – accounted for "only" a 34% share in the total transaction volume in Poland, says Bartłomiej Krzyżak, Senior Director, Investment at Avison Young Poland.

Investors are not in a hurry to buy assets yet, assuming those assets may become cheaper as holders are in trouble. Property Forum asked Kristóf Bárány, Founding Partner of fund management company Adventum Group about their preferences in Hungary and the broader region.

The energy group Premier Energy has bought new projects in Romania with a capacity of approximately 41 megawatts, for which it paid €13 million. After completing all acquisitions and planned developments there, it will own or manage 700 megawatts of renewable energy, Pavel Zuna, a spokesman for Emma Capital, Premier Energy's parent company, told E15.

Another German investor is entering the Polish property market. The Livos Group of companies is starting its expansion in Poland with Warsaw. The investor has purchased 63 residential units in the Złota 44 high-rise building in the very centre of the Polish capital. The seller was Catella Residential Investment Management, which has thus withdrawn from this country, Investmap.pl reports.

Real Management S.A. has closed the sale of the office and technology building Bolero Office Point 2, located at 4 Równoległa Street in Warsaw. The building has been acquired by Interpierre Europe Centrale, an SCPI managed by PAREF Gestion. The price has not been disclosed.

While the investment volume will cool this year after the record of transactions worth €‎1.25 billion that was closed in 2022, Romania will remain on the radar of investors throughout 2023, with some trends set to shape the development. CBRE Romania has published a report summarising the driving forces for the local industry this year.