Key figures

• Thanks to inflation clauses in lease agreements, rent collections increased by 5.3 percent to €85 million, or nearly CZK 1.9 billion.
• The value of the portfolio, which includes 29 parks in four countries, exceeded €1.5 billion (approximately CZK 33 billion).
• The fund exceeded 1.6 million sqm of premium industrial space under its ownership last year, making it one of the largest funds in Central Europe.

European real estate markets have been struggling with rising yields pushing property values down. But this is not true of all market segments. The industrial property continued to perform well over the past year. "There is still a shortage of warehouse and manufacturing space on the market. Therefore, we are constantly being approached by new clients from logistics and manufacturing companies, as well as e-commerce. Despite the fact that analyses show a slight year-on-year decline in the condition in this area, we do not feel it on the interest for new space," said Milan Kratina, CEO of Accolade.

Thanks to record low vacancy and historically exceptional rental growth, the value of the fund's portfolio is not declining. This is due, among other things, to inflation clauses in lease agreements that allow for rent increases. "In spite of this, all the rents in the Fund's parks are paid and the premises are fully occupied, with one exception in the Minsk Mazowiecki complex in Poland, for a company which, especially during the coronavirus pandemic, specialised in the production of respirators and protective equipment," Kratina added, adding that the Fund now has a good opportunity to conclude more favourable terms with a new tenant for these premises than the original ones, depending on the current situation.

The Fund has again confirmed the predicted annual yield

Accolade Industrial Fund has returned 9.33 percent in euros and 8.49 percent in crowns over the past year. It thus met the predicted appreciation. In addition, the fund's portfolio also grew significantly last year. Already in September, the fund surpassed the milestone of 1.5 million sqm of premium industrial space under management. Interesting additions include a number of sites across Poland, for example in the Szczecin or Gorzow Wielkopolski parks, or the first multi-storey distribution centre in the Czech Republic near Kojetín for the multinational e-commerce company Amazon.

The value of the portfolio today is around €1.5 billion, which is roughly CZK 33 billion. In the last quarter of last year alone, two new projects were added to the fund in the south and southwest of Poland, specifically in the cities of Czestochowa and Legnica. The fund has thus become one of the largest and most stable real estate funds in Central Europe in the past year.

The positive development of the fund, in which more than 3 thousand investors have already invested their funds, is also appreciated by the financial world. The fund has successfully refinanced a portfolio of five completed and fully leased industrial parks in Poland. More than €129 million (approximately CZK 3.1 billion) was provided by the Polish bank Helaba, one of Europe's largest banking houses, for this refinancing. Thanks to this loan, the fund can increase the profitability and profitability of its portfolio in the coming years.

The forecasts for this year so far look favourable. The first half of the year will see the most significant inflation clauses in the fund's performance to date, and the fund's portfolio will expand with its first property in Spain. "Given that the new level of industrial property rents across the markets is significantly higher than what we currently have contracted, I believe we will continue to successfully fight to maintain property values in our existing portfolio. Conversely, this could provide us with additional acquisition opportunities with higher yields than in 2021 and parts of 2022," Kratina concluded.