As ESG expectations move from aspiration to obligation, real estate leaders are being forced to confront how sustainability directly affects asset value, financing and long-term resilience. Chaired by ESG Partner Tjidsger Wierda of Walvius Partners, the sustainability session at CEE Property Forum 2025 brought together a range of expertise and pragmatic perspectives on the evolving role of ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) in commercial real estate.

Central Europe's commercial real estate sector is experiencing a transformation, with Hungary leading the recovery through an 86% year-on-year increase in investment driven by Asian capital from China and South Korea. The CATL factory in Debrecen and BYD in Szeged, along with the planned Volvo plant in Košice, Slovakia, are reshaping the region's industrial landscape and creating demand for logistics space.

As liquidity gradually returns and pricing expectations realign, investors across CEE are reassessing where resilient income and long-term value can still be found. A session at CEE Property Forum 2025, moderated by James Fitzgerald, Director and Head of Industrial Agency at iO Partners, offered deep insights into how market dynamics have shifted over the past 18 months and what opportunities lie ahead as investors increasingly seek resilient, high-yielding assets.

The traditional December shopping surge has weakened across Europe, with Romania recording a 20% increase in non-food sales during the holiday month compared to the previous 11 months, according to Colliers analysis of Eurostat data from 2015-2024.

Analysts from Axi Immo's Research Department estimate that approximately 90,000 sqm of new office space will be delivered in Warsaw by year-end, consistent with 2024. Space under construction remains limited and is not expected to exceed 200,000 sqm, signalling a cautious approach from developers. Most activity is concentrated in central zones, where demand remains most resilient.

The executive data roundtable at the CEE Property Forum in Vienna marked a new format for senior real estate decision-makers in Central and Eastern Europe. Held under Chatham House rules, the session enabled an open and strategic exchange on the role of data in driving portfolio performance, risk management, and resilience.

In the East European region, the aggregated construction outlook for next year has remained positive, only the trajectory has changed a little, according to the winter report of the Eastern European Construction Forecasting Association (EECFA). 

At Balkans Property Forum 2025 in Belgrade, senior bankers, investors and developers came together to assess where capital is flowing in a market shaped by cautious optimism and selective growth. The investment and financing panel examined how asset preferences, financing conditions, regulatory capacity and ESG expectations are influencing investment decisions across Serbia and the wider region, revealing both the persistence of traditional strongholds and the gradual emergence of new priorities.

At CEE Property Forum 2025, the panel on urban living examined how cities across Central and Eastern Europe are being reshaped by demographic change, new living formats and rising investor interest. Chaired by Kinga Barchon, Partner and Real Estate Leader at PwC Polska, the discussion navigated the fast-evolving landscape of urban development and the multifaceted opportunities and challenges shaping the years ahead.

At CEE Property Forum 2025, local and cross-border investors came together in a panel moderated by Dániel Ódor MRICS, Partner at Taylor Wessing Hungary. The discussion offered not only a glimpse into current market sentiment but also probed the tides of regulatory evolution, sectoral dynamics, and strategic foresight driving CEE real estate forward.