The market was dominated by investments in office properties accounting for 43% of all transactions, while industrial investment made up 28% and the retail sector constituted only 17%, compared to 2015, when it dominated the market. The largest number of transactions in the office sector took place in Prague, at 97%.

“Asian investors that are active in the CEE market tend to be focussed on larger transactions, such as dominant properties, portfolios or even by taking an ownership interest in a real estate operating platform itself, such as the recent acquisition of P3 Logistics Parks by GIC, the Singaporean Sovereign Wealth fund”, Chris Sheils, Head of Investment Properties at CBRE commented.

 

Investments by Asian investors in 2016 accounted for 36% of total investment, followed by investors from the Czech Republic (32%), with Germany coming in third (12%).

CBRE predicts continued downward pressure on prime yields in the investment sector; however, this decline will be slower than in previous years. Currently, they monitor more than 50 ongoing transactions on the market with a total investment volume of over €3.3 billion, which could be closed by the end of 2017. CBRE further predicts that more than 50% of the total investment in 2017 will be regional.