The commercial real estate market was generally characterised by favourable trends in H1 2022, but in the latter half of the year, risks associated with the business cycle increased in Hungary. Vacancy rates have increased since and are expected to go up for the rest of this year, the Hungarian Central Bank (MNB) reports.

In Q4 2022, Hungarian residential property prices fell by 3.6% compared to the previous quarter. The Central Bank of Hungary (MNB) reports the sharpest decline was seen in smaller municipalities.

Rising energy prices and construction costs, the volatility and depreciation of the forint against the euro, rising interest rates and tightening financing conditions all represent challenges for the actors over the short term, the Hungarian National Bank (MNB) states in its fresh outlook. 

In recent quarters, the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) has measured substantial and growing overvaluation in the housing market, which has been coupled with an increase in banking sector risks related to lending. These risks have not decreased so far even with the uncertainty related to the war situation of the past months; hence, supporting banks' resilience with regulatory tools is warranted. The Financial Stability Board of the MNB has therefore decided to raise bank capital requirements and will increase the countercyclical capital buffer rate to 0.5% from 1 July 2023, for the first time since its introduction six years ago, Hungarian economic daily Portfolio.hu reports.

Geopolitical tensions hurt demand for commercial property, appetite for property development, financing conditions and property investment decisions over the short run, the Hungarian National Bank (MNB) reports.

Home prices in Hungary have increased further, with provincial cities showing an outstanding price rise and Budapest also becoming more expensive following a year of stagnation, the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) said in its latest Housing Market Report. The price gap between Budapest and county seats has decreased in 2021. On a national average, housing prices rose 13.3% year on year in Q2, including a 9.1% rise in Budapest and an 18.2% increase outside the capital.

Housing prices rose just 0.5% in Q2 2021 in Hungary, according to the Central Statistical Office’s (KSH) latest Housing Price Index. Year on year, the increase was 11.5% in Q2, partly because of a low base as prices fell slightly between April and June 2020 due to pandemic-related uncertainty.

The performance of sectors relevant to the commercial real estate market improved in the second quarter of 2021, while the positive impact of growth on the real estate market fell short of that observed in previous cycles, partly due to the direct impact of the pandemic (lasting drop in tourism) and partly to uncertainties resulting from the trends accelerated by the pandemic (penetration of home office and e-commerce), the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) said in its latest Commercial Real Estate Market Report. In addition to an overview of the office, warehouse, hotel and retail markets, the report also reveals that the ratio of domestic investors in all property deals was nearly 80%, even higher than in the especially active year of 2019.

The competition authorities of Poland, Hungary and Serbia have all granted consent for Optimum Ventures Private Equity Fund’s takeover of a majority shareholding (61.49%) in Globe Trade Centre S.A., a Polish company trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

In order to expand its investment portfolio and implement its growth strategy, Hungarian investor-developer Wing has raised €156 million (HUF 54.7 billion) within the framework of the Central Bank of Hungary’s Funding for Growth Scheme. Corporate bonds subscribed by the central bank and other institutional investors have a maturity of 10 years and a yield of 3.56 percent.