What’s next for the office market? What do occupiers want? What effect would an economic slowdown have on development? Heads of the European offices of real estate advisory firm Cresa talked about business opportunities and risks, and the global political uncertainty at their annual conference in Warsaw.

Prosperity on the real estate investment market in Poland is still noticed. Good economic situation and attractive yields in comparison to the Western Europe has attracted foreign investors even from distant countries and continents. Will the momentum be kept? What are the forecasts for the end of 2019?

The largest supply of modern office space in 15 CEE countries was recorded in Warsaw, Budapest and in Prague, while the biggest increase of new supply in H1 2019 was noted in Bucharest. The most active tenant sectors are IT, professional services, banking, and BPO/SSC. More and more office buildings can boast of prestigious certificates, modern technological and ecological solutions and innovatively designed space, according to Colliers International’s latest report.

According to the latest CEE investment report by Skanska, Colliers International and Dentons, the region is expected to keep up the momentum. A favorable economic situation and a very good performance of the CEE cities drive demand for new investments, including in the office market. The office stock has been growing over recent years and now totals 21.8 million sqm throughout the entire CEE. Forecasted completions by 2021 will increase it by another 20% - to 26.5 million sqm. Last year’s investment in real estate markets in CEE reached approx. €13.2 billion, with over €5 billion in the office market.

Investors have adopted an increasingly diverse set of strategies to commercial property investment, ensuring global investment volumes have remained above the previous peak of end-2007 for the sixth year in a row reaching over US$1.7 trillion on an annual rolling basis, a situation likely to continue into 2020.  That’s according to Colliers International, which has released its latest Capital Flows Research at Expo Real.  

Ambitious revitalization plans, a thriving academic centre, nearly one million inhabitants living within its metropolitan area, as well as an increasingly improving infrastructure and extensive transport network are factors that are shaping the image of Łódź as a strong location for real estate investors. However, not only the office market is developing rapidly in the city. According to the report concluded by JLL, the City Hall of Łódź and HAYS Poland entitled "Łódź - Revitalizing a vibrant business and living hub", the residential and hotel segments are also achieving better results.

Bucharest’s modern office stock will increase by over 500,000 sqm in 2019 and 2020. According to Colliers International Romania, these dynamics of the office market could generate variations in the office buildings’ market values of plus or minus 5% during the indicated period. To measure these possible changes, three factors were considered: the average vacancy rate, the level of the incentives packages that owners offer to tenants and yield compression.

Sylwia Toczyska, Director, Client Services at Vistra Poland looked at the withholding tax rules in the country, examining how further clarification is needed and the action that companies may need to take. An article from Vistra’s Global Real Estate Trends publication.

Wrocław is one of the most rapidly developing business centres in Poland and the third largest office market in the country. The city's office supply at the end of the first half of 2019 was 1.1 million sqm. The attractiveness of the Wrocław market is luring many employees from other cities, and as a result, up to 75% of specialists in Wrocław's business services sector are from outside the city, according to JLL.

Tri-City continues to attract investments and the three cities' office sector continues to expand. The uniqueness of the Tri-City market is underpinned by the fact that the largest office complex in Poland is located here. What's more, Poland's first office park to be located within an airport is planned for Gdańsk, while Gdynia will offer unique office space situated on the waterfront. According to last year's JLL estimates, in 2021 Tri-City will be the third-largest regional market with office supply exceeding one million sqm.