Class A office buildings in the downtown areas of Gdańsk and Gdynia will finally become available for lease, complementing office provision on the outskirts of the Tricity agglomeration. Tenants are likely to move to new headquarters in more prestigious locations, says Michał Rafałowicz, Head for the Pomeranian Region at advisory firm Cresa Poland.

FLE GmbH, a company of the LFPI group, has acquired two new office properties in Budapest on behalf of the Luxemburg based fund FLE SICAV FIS. The parties to the transaction have agreed not to disclose the purchase price and other details.

Diófa Asset Management has acquired the Infopark A office building from CA Immo at the end of 2017. Representing Magyar Posta Takarék Real Estate Investment Fund, Diófa Alapkezelő Zrt. bought a 14 000 sqm Class A office building. The seller was represented by Colliers International in this sales transaction.

In the next two years Delta Holding plans to invest €600 million in real estate projects in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Bulgaria.

Total demand on the Budapest office market in Q4 2017 reached 144,365 sqm, representing a 13% decrease year-on-year. The office vacancy rate has decreased to 7.5%, the lowest rate on record. The Budapest Research Forum published its latest figures.

In 2017 the Bucharest office market has posted results close to the 2016 record ones, taking into consideration transactions in Class A and B buildings. 2018 is expected to bring growth and new demand from players that are going to enter the market, but also of the existent ones who will extend or relocate. The annual Knight Frank report – European Commercial Property Outlook – estimates that European commercial property markets enter 2018 with positive momentum.

Skanska’s commercial development business unit in Central Eastern Europe will be the first developer worldwide to cover office buildings with semi-transparent perovskite solar cells on a commercial scale. Saule Technologies will be the technology provider. The initial implementation tests are planned for 2018 in Poland.

pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank provided an investment facility of €41.4 million to companies owned by a professional private real estate investor and managed by development and investment company Amesbury s.r.o. The funds will be used to refinance the Zlicin and Chrastany business parks near Prague. Thereby pbb extended the maturity of its financing by another five years. The transaction closed in December 2017.

Colliers REMS Hungary has been assigned by Skanska for the role of property manager for Mill Park Offices, from 2018. Mill Park is Skanska’s latest office project in Budapest, consisting of two buildings, Mill Park A and Mill Park B, with a total GLA of 36,000 sqm, divided over 7 floors and 538 parking places. Building B will be delivered in Q2 2018, while building A in Q3 2018.

Last year, in a landmark deal, CPI Property Group has acquired 11 CEE retail assets from funds managed by CBRE Global Investors. Country Manager Mátyás Gereben talked to us about the company’s future plans for Hungary and revealed what’s in store for the five assets – shopping centres Pólus and Campona, the Andrássy Complex and two Interpsar stores – that were added to CPI’s Hungarian portfolio as a result of the €650 million deal.