Helaba, Berlin Hyp and pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank have jointly underwritten an investment facility totalling €230 million to refinance Warsaw Spire Tower. The asset is owned by Immofinanz. The financing transaction closed in September 2019. Helaba, Berlin Hyp and pbb are acting as joint lead arrangers providing equal portions of the funding, with Helaba acting as facility and security agent of the transaction.

CBRE expanded its Romanian management team by recruiting Alexandra Baciu as Head of HR (People) for CBRE Romania, starting with September 2019. With 15 years of overall professional experience and her core expertise residing in the area of HR, Alexandra will oversee HR Strategy for the 160 employees of the CBRE Romania team.

It took 17 months for Avestus Real Estate to develop the construction of the Imagine complex at the intersection of Al. Piłsudskiego and Al. Śmigłego-Rydza in Łódź.

The Asset Services department of Cushman & Wakefield Echinox has taken over the administration of the Colosseum shopping centre since October 1st, thus expanding its portfolio in Bucharest with a project in full expansion.

JLL has completed the first phase of the modernisation of the Liberty Center shopping centre in Bucharest, owned by three banks (Alpha Bank, Bank of Cyprus and Eurobank) following the insolvency of developer Mivan Kier. Occupancy rate at Liberty Center has reached 91%, following a €400,000 investment.

NEPI Rockcastle has announced the acquisition of a 200,000 sqm land in Craiova and plans to construct one of the biggest retail projects in the region of Oltenia. The value of the investment is estimated at approximately €110 million and the construction will start after obtaining all the necessary approvals.

IMS Budownictwo has completed the sale process of Building A of the Zabłocie Business Park in Kraków. A company from the Austrian insurance group Uniqa became the office property’s new owner. The final agreement was signed on September 12th, with the transaction amounting to nearly €30 million. Knight Frank acted on behalf of the seller.

Ceetrus has unveiled plans for its Góraszka Project which the developer has dubbed an innovative retailtainment destination with a GLA of 77,000 sqm. It will be a premium location for the inhabitants of south-eastern Warsaw for shopping and spending time with family and friends. The facility is expected to be completed by 2022. Ceetrus is open to cooperating with new investors, the press release adds.

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.