One of the most positive developments in 2017 was the wide variety of properties that achieved green building certification. While almost all new speculative office buildings in Hungary have been certified for the past several years, it is becoming increasingly common for retail, industrial and even hotel properties to be certified. On the retail side, in 2017 Árkád Pécs achieved DGNB In-Use certification, and the Auchan Soroksár extension received the BREEAM interim certification.

 

The stock of certified industrial properties also increased considerably, with additional buildings at ProLogis Park Sziget obtaining BREEAM new construction certification and Becton Dickinson’s new factory in Tatabánya being LEED certified.

 

Perhaps most interestingly, the Four Points by Sheraton in Kecskemét has become the first LEED certified hotel in Hungary.

 

“In 2018, over 350,000 sqm of new office supply will be completed in Budapest and all of these buildings are targeting either LEED or BREEAM certification, with the market split evenly between the two certification schemes. Even countryside office developments such as Forest Offices Debrecen now recognize the value of green building certification in attracting tenants and protecting the environment. Just as importantly, a growing number of office developments are now pursuing WELL certification – which focuses on the health and well-being of building occupants, and we expect the first WELL Core & Shell building to achieve certification in 2018.” – said Norbert Szircsák, Senior Associate at Colliers International’s Green Advisory Services.