The Warsaw office market saw a shrinking volume of space under construction and increasing pressure on rents in 2022. However, according to the latest report by Cushman & Wakefield, the capital's market could see a significant tenant recovery as contracts signed in the record period of 2018-2019 come up for renewal.

According to a Cushman & Wakefield report, the retail real estate sector saw the continued expansion of retail parks in 2022, accounting for 70% of new supply delivered to the market. Despite many challenges related to inflation and general economic uncertainty, 14 new brands made their debut in Poland during the year. However, the next few months may experience a downturn in consumer sentiment, with lower retail sales, and in turn, reduced turnover for retail tenants.

The total value of properties divested in 2022 by 7R totalled more than €430 million. This is historically a record year for the developer.

Face2Face Business Campus, an office complex in Katowice with a combined area of close to 50,000 sqm, has a new property manager. Its owner, a joint venture of the Czech fund INVESTIKA realitní fond and Luxembourg-based private equity investor Bud Holdings, has instructed Savills to provide property management for the complex.

According to a report published by Newmark Polska, in 2022 Poland’s regional city markets overtook Warsaw in terms of total modern office stock. Their overall vacancy rate held firm amid moderate development activity.

In 2022, Karimpol Polska signed 11 leases with a total area of nearly 22,200 sqm in Skyliner, its flagship project in Warsaw’s Wola district. The commercialisation of the building has reached 80%. CBRE Poland has brokered the lease of all spaces.

GTC closed the year by achieving a high occupancy rate for its office buildings in Warsaw. Particularly important for GTC's results was a contract-laden end of the year. The company signed office leases from its Warsaw portfolio for nearly 20,000 sqm, 34 percent of all transactions were new tenants.

Real estate investment volumes in CEE reached almost €10.7 billion during 2022, up 6.6% compared to the previous year, with Poland accounting for 54% of all transactions, trailed by the Czech Republic and Romania with shares of 14% and 12%, respectively, according to a report by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

Waldemar Wasiluk, Vice-President of the Management Board and CFO of Victoria Dom, one of the largest residential developers in Poland, talked to Property Forum about the current difficult situation in the market, the interest of the PRS investment funds and the cautious approach of financing entities.

Demand for Warsaw offices remains at the level we saw during the market boom, despite the fact that many tenants are optimizing their floor space, says Walter Herz.