Over the year, since the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Poland, the Warsaw office market has seen a marked decrease in occupier demand and office stock under construction amid rising vacancy rates. Although the past 12 months have been challenging for the office sector, companies are no less keen to have an office of their own, says real estate advisory firm Savills.

Construction of two 95-metre Towarowa Towers located on Prosta Street in Warsaw's city centre is starting. It is another investment by Asbud Group near Daszyńskiego Roundabout.

Panattoni Europe has obtained an ‘Excellent’ rating under the BREEAM International New Construction system for Panattoni Park Sosnowiec I. This is the first time such a high certification level has been achieved on the Polish industrial real estate market for a newly built project.

After a year from the beginning of the pandemic, investors are continuing their strategies adjusted to the new market conditions. Most of them are focusing mainly on safe, predictable investments. This year Avison Young has observed the third-best opening ever with almost €1.3 billion transacted in 31 deals during the first quarter of 2021.

The Q1 2021 results of the RICS Global Commercial Property Monitor indicate a slightly less negative market sentiment across Europe compared to the previous quarter. Rental growth expectations remain negative within the office and retail sectors across all European nations covered, while the outlook for industrial markets has never been more positive.

Growthpoint Properties Limited, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Oak Hill Advisors responded to the unilateral announcement by CPI Property Group and Aroundtown of a firm intention to make a cash offer for the share capital of Globalworth.

According to the latest Savills research, at figures ranging between €4.60-5.30 per sqm per month, out of 54 markets analysed, Prague and the Polish cities of Katowice, Wrocław, TriCity and Poznań are among the ten cheapest locations for renting a modern warehouse globally. In Europe, Poznań (€4.68/sqm/month) is the most cost-effective location with only certain cities in India and Vietnam having lower overall warehousing property costs.

At the end of Q1 2021, the total modern office stock in Poland's eight major regional markets amounted to 5,826,400 sqm. The largest office markets in Poland (following Warsaw) were Kraków (1,574,000 sqm), Wrocław (1,226,300 sqm) and the Tri-City (913,600 sqm). The Polish Chamber of Commercial Real Estate (PINK) has published figures on the office market in eight major regional markets (Kraków, Wrocław, the Tri-City, Katowice, Poznań, Łódź, Lublin, Szczecin) for Q1 2021.

The industrial and logistics sector continues with strong momentum while large scale office transactions have slowed in European investment volumes, as many countries saw overall activity halve in comparison to Q1 2020, notes Colliers. In Poland, liquidity is returning to the office market, which can be confirmed by the number of transactions.

In 2020, applications for building permits in Warsaw were pouring in, says Walter Herz. According to the Permits for the Construction of Office Buildings Warsaw 2016-2020 report, last year brought over a 40% increase in the number of filed applications for building permits for facilities offering office space in Warsaw, compared to the previous year.