Justyna Filipczak, Head of CEE at Cromwell Property Group, talked to Property Forum about the current investment trends, the attractiveness of retail and office properties and the company`s ESG agenda.

Romanian developer HILS Development has announced the launch of a new mixed-use scheme in Bucharest that will include residential, office and retail components that will cover 180,000 sqm.

In the third quarter of 2023, the total value of the Echo Investment Group`s assets increased to PLN 6.2 billion, while its further development is supported by a high level of cash amounting to PLN 627 million.

As demand for hybrid working rises International Workplace Group (IWG) expands its footprint in Budapest and Debrecen with the addition of two new workspaces. The opening of these two facilities is scheduled for 2024.

Warimpex has opened its third office building in Kraków, the Mogilska 35 Offices. The taxonomy-compliant property has 11,900 sqm of space, is located in the immediate vicinity of the city centre and is named after its address on Mogilska Street. There are also Warimpex office buildings at numbers 41 and 43, which are fully occupied. Mogilska 35 is already almost half let and also offers flexible coworking options.

According to Workthere.pl’s latest Flexmark report, larger companies (101+ people) and scale-ups (21-100 people) now account for 54% of global flexible office members, compared with 42% of members last year. The flexible office specialist notes that this increase is also reflected in take-up levels with these larger companies accounting for 34% of global take-up in flexible offices, compared to 22% in 2022 and just 13% in 2020.

Witold Zatoński, Founder of Syrena Real Estate, talked to Property Forum about the profitability of revitalizing older office buildings, the challenges related to such projects and the development of the PRS market in Poland.

AG Capital has announced that Park Lane Developments, its commercial development company, broke ground on its latest project – the AYA Business Centre in Sofia. The building is planned to become the new home for MFG (Management Financial Group). 

Public transport remains the most important amenity among office-based employees from Generations Z, Y, X, and Baby Boomers, according to a CBRE Romania survey. Furthermore, more than half of them would attend events organised in the office space leased by their employer. Meanwhile, the office workspace remains popular among Gen Y employees.

Interest in leasing offices in Poland is growing. In the third quarter, both in Warsaw and on the regional markets, the demand for office space was the highest this year. In the regions, 2023 will close with a result similar to the record from 2019.