Metro Properties, the real estate company of METRO AG, sold 11 Cash & Carry stores in Poland, Hungary and Czech Republic in a sale-and-leaseback transaction. The portfolio has been acquired by FLE GmbH, Vienna, subsidiary of French LFPI Group, investing on behalf of an AIF regulated fund. The transaction was finalized in August 2019, with a total volume exceeding €250 million. Metro and Makro Cash & Carry will continue to operate all wholesale locations on the basis of long-term lease contracts.

Commercial land prices have been stable over the first half of 2019, while prices for residential sites continue their rising trend at a slower pace, according to Colliers International.

Cromwell Property Group has exercised its pre-emptive right to acquire a third-party investor interest in the Cromwell Polish Retail Fund (CPRF), which it has managed since acquiring the investment and asset manager from GE Capital Real Estate in 2013. The fund contains seven catchment dominating shopping centres with a gross asset value of circa €600 million. Since taking over the management of the fund, Cromwell has completed several major asset management initiatives including several refurbishments and expansions, as well as numerous lettings including a 170,000 sqm deal with Auchan and Schiever Polska across eight long-term leases in 2015.

JLL has been selected by White Stone Group as property manager for the Celebro office building in Warsaw. The building has already been commissioned for use and its first tenants will relocate to the project in September 2019.

According to JLL, the value of real estate investment transactions in Central and Eastern Europe totalled more than €5.47 billion in H1 2019. Poland is the clear front-runner accounting for €2.72 billion (almost 50% share), followed by the Czech Republic with €1.68 billion (30%). In both countries, Asian investors, particularly those from South Korea, have been remarkably active. Total volumes in Hungary amounted to €400 million, while in Romania and Slovakia total volumes hit €338 and €350 million respectively.

Joki Sp. z o.o. - a subsidiary of Marvipol Development - has finalized the purchase of a plot of around ​​2.6 ha, located on Bokserska Street in Warsaw. The transaction value is €12.44 million (PLN 54.3 million). The sale process was organized by experts from the international advisory firm JLL representing the vendor.a

Savills has been appointed an office and retail leasing adviser for Okrąglak and Kwadraciak, two of the most iconic buildings in Poznań.

Following the acquisition of the Warsaw Spire Tower high-rise, Immofinanz is taking a further step to optimise its office portfolio in Warsaw. A new multifunctional concept was prepared for the EMPARK office location, which originally covered 117,000 sqm of rentable space, to meet the demand for mixed-use through the inclusion of residential and commercial areas. Immofinanz plans to concentrate on the management and further modernisation of the four EMPARK office buildings, while the section designated for housing will be sold to the Polish developer Echo Investment.

The valuation team of Cresa Poland advised Colas, part of the Bouygues Group, on their acquisition of 11 asphalt plants from Skanska. 

Building H, the eighth element of TriGranit’s Bonarka for Business (B4B), one of the most popular office complexes in Kraków, has been opened. The eight-storey, Class A office building with 9,855 sqm GLA already has a 45% occupancy rate, while the occupancy of Building F has recently reached 100%. So far in 2019, there have been more than 11,000 sqm new leases or lease extensions in the Bonarka office complex. TriGranit is preparing the delivery of two further office projects in the B4B complex, Building I and Building J, each with 10,000 sqm GLA.