The estimated value of transactions in the Polish institutional rental market exceeded €1.8 billion at the end of 2022, most of which were contracts for projects under development (forward contracts), according to the latest DLA Piper and Savills report – PRS market in CEE. Experts expect that high real estate prices and the declining availability of mortgages will generate increased demand for apartment rentals in the coming years, and thus attract new investments to this market segment.

Real estate advisory firm Savills has strengthened its management board in Poland with the appointment of three new members acting as business line directors. 

Four buildings of the Wiśniowy Business Park changed hands as the Hungarian company obtained the properties from Netherlands-based seller Cherry MidCo B.V. This is Appeninn's first acquisition outside Hungary.

United Benefits Holding is entering the Polish real estate market with the acquisition of the 16,000 sqm Silver Forum office building in Wrocław.  The company plans to optimize the property with a focus on ESG standards and mobility, thus leveraging the property’s value-add potential. The price of the asset has not been disclosed. 

Cushman & Wakefield has been appointed by BIK S.A. to manage a property portfolio comprising four logistics parks. BIK S.A. is a Polish logistics developer owned by investment fund NREP NSF IV and supervised by Logicenters – the logistics platform of NREP. Cushman & Wakefield will provide integrated asset management solutions including financial and accounting services and ESG strategy execution advisory for Logistics Centre Kraków I, Logistics Centre Kraków II, BIK Park Sosnowiec II and BIK Park Wrocław I, with a combined leasable area of around 80,000 sqm.

The Polish warehousing market in 2022 remained in good condition. By the end of December 2022, more than 4.4 million sqm (+42% y/y) of new space was completed, corresponding with strong activity by tenants, who leased nearly 6.7 million sqm (-9 y/y). Another 3.4 million sqm is under construction (-25% y/y), which promises to surpass the 30 million sqm mark in 2023. The high absorption rate did not significantly affect the increase in the vacancy rate, keeping it at 4.1% (+0.2 bps y/y). The event of the year was undoubtedly the rising rental rates, which increased on average by 15-20% compared to previous years, according to Axi Immo's recent report.

Żabka Polska is preparing to open a new logistics centre in Małopole by Radzymin near Warsaw. It will be one of the largest and most innovative logistics centres in Europe. The launch of the new facility with an area of approximately 60,000 sqm is planned for the second quarter of 2023. Thanks to this investment, more than 600 people will find work in the region - employed directly by Żabka or in companies cooperating with it. 

GLP has been operating in Central Eastern Europe for nearly three years. In that time, it has doubled its portfolio in the region, with a total of nearly 2.5 million sqm of building assets currently under management in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. The company is planning new ventures that will reinforce its position among the region’s leading logistics real estate investors, developers and managers.

Titanx Engine Cooling, a supplier of cooling systems for commercial vehicle manufacturers, is ramping up its production and distribution capacity at CTPark Opole in the Silesian region of southwest Poland by leasing an additional 27,000 sqm of space. The new capacity will help meet strong demand from customers in its key German, Polish and Czech markets.

The rising share of domestic investors has kept volumes high in CEE property markets in the last year and this trend will continue. The overall market outlook is quite optimistic as further declines are expected for inflation and construction costs, concluded panellists of Property Forum's recent online event.