High inflation is one of the factors that will have a huge impact on budgeting related to leasing office space by tenants in the near future, says Avison Young Poland.

The next few months will show the extent to which the increase in the costs of renting office space and property maintenance will affect further development of the office sector. Higher costs of running a business will force companies to verify their budget plans, says Robert Pastuszka, Director, Office Agency at Avison Young Poland.

High inflation and rising interest rates pose a threat to the upturn in the economy which many expected following the pandemic. Dieter Knittel, Managing Director, Head of CEE at Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (pbb) talked to Property Forum about financing trends and shared his expectations for the upcoming period.

Existing income-producing assets with a reasonable capital value per sqm and strong tenants will be a winner for many investors in the upcoming period. Avison Young has published its CEE property investment market report for H1 2022.

With energy prices rising at an unprecedented rate and the system of governmental discounts on utility bills in Hungary significantly changing, working from the office might become a more attractive option even for those that love working only from home. In the coming months, not only employees but employers will also try to reduce their energy use. Energy-efficient office buildings will further increase in value as they will become a more attractive option for tenants. Flex and serviced offices will also see increased demand as they will be able to provide a more financially stable option for tenants with utility costs included in the rental fee.

Today, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank decided to raise the three key ECB interest rates by 50 basis points and approved the Transmission Protection Instrument (TPI) in an effort to make sure inflation returns to its 2% target over the medium term.

The most exposed sectors to the inflationary pressures in Romania are the residential, industrial and retail ones, with a lot more resilience found in the office segment, suggest representatives of real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

Monika Bronicka, Director and Head of Valuation and Advisory at Avison Young talked to Property Forum about the current challenges to the valuation of properties under rapidly-changing market conditions in Poland.

Rents for commercial projects that are being developed at present in Romania will grow in the next 2-3 years, while demand for green buildings will continue to expand, concluded speakers at a panel discussion at Property Forum’s annual Summer Networking Party organised in Bucharest.

Banks are happy to finance practically any new logistics project. But they are extremely cautious with the office and retail segments, not to mention hotel investments. Property Forum asked Tamás Deák, Director of Commercial Real Estate Finance at Erste Bank Hungary Zrt. about their financing practices amid the new, harsh economic conditions.