JLL secured the sale of an attractive land plot in Košíře in Prague 5 on Jinonická Street. The seller was Premium Imobilien and the buyer was developer Ideastav. In the future, there will be a residential project offering 28 luxury apartments with 42 parking spaces for sale. The transaction was provided by the SMI (Small and Medium Investment) department under the leadership of Pavol Bak.

Romanian developer Wallberg has secured a €5.8 million loan from Garanti Bank to finance the development of the XCity Towers project in Timisoara. XCity Towers it will be built in several stages, with a total of 955 apartments in 8 buildings. The total value of the project will exceed €62 million, of which the first stage will amount to €36 million.

Metrohouse Franchise, the 100% subsidiary of Hungary’s Duna House Holding. has signed an agreement in Warsaw to acquire 100% ownership in Gold Finance Sp. z o.o. The total investment was €908,000 (PLN 3.9 million), out of which the purchase price was PLN 3.5 million, plus MF acquired shareholder loans from the sellers with the face value of PLN 0.4 million.

Prague is becoming increasingly more expensive than Bratislava. Employees continue to earn more in the capital of the Czech Republic, though the cost of living is also rising, especially in regards to housing. This is evidenced by the results of research done by JLL, which compared the prices of apartments in both capitals.

Cordia Romania, the residential division of Hungary’s Futureal Group, plans to invest €50 million in new projects million next year. The company aims to deliver about 500 apartments per year on the Bucharest residential market, designed for the medium and medium-high segments.

The National Bank of Romania (NBR) reintroduced limits for the maximum indebtedness levels for individuals or families seeking out consumer or mortgage loans. These debt service-to-income (DSTI) ratios will become 40% for RON loans and 20% for hard currency starting in 2019. As per Colliers International Romania’s estimates, for the residential market, the impact in terms of prices will be uneven, geared more towards the low and medium-low segments of the residential market.

Belgian real estate developer Didier Balcaen is investing €15 million in a residential project called Triama Residence in the National Arena neighbourhood of Bucharest, profit.ro reports.

Echo Investment has signed preliminary sales agreements with Resi4Rent for four projects under development in Warsaw, Wrocław and Łódź for a combined price of €78.6 million (PLN 338.7 million). The four projects - Browary Warszawskie in Warsaw, Wodna in Łódź, Rychtalska and Kępa in Wrocław – will comprise 1,200 apartments altogether.

Fosta Fabrica, the restoration and conversion project of the former Grivita brewery in Bucharest, received all necessary permits and it is expected to be completed in 2020 by Lithuanian developer Hanner Group.

Penta, Sudop and Czech Railways are planning a new real estate project next to Prague's main railway station. The project would involve covering the railroad tracks between Španělská, Legerova and Vinohradská streets at the southern tip of the station, local daily E15 learned.