ARTICLES LABELLED WITH TAG Vlad Săftoiu

Romania's banking sector has a relatively low exposure to the commercial real estate (CRE) market, indicating stability and significant growth potential, according to an analysis by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

Investors view the logistics sector with optimism and, to a lesser extent, retail over the next 12 months, according to a Cushman & Wakefield Echinox study conducted among the most important investors and developers in Romania.

Romania’s total stock of industrial and logistics spaces could reach the 8 million sqm threshold at the end of 2025, if the recent annual development pace of around 500,000 sqm is maintained, according to a report by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

Romanians have spent €36 billion in large retail chains during 2023, an amount 11% higher compared with 2022, according to a Cushman & Wakefield report. Of the total amount, FMCG had a share of more than 60%.

New office deliveries in regional cities totaled 83,000 sqm in 2023 and the total leasable area has climbed close to 1.1 million sqm, according to a Cushman & Wakefield report. Offices in regional cities of the likes of Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara and Brașov represent around 30% of the corresponding total in Bucharest.

Banks in Romania are actively looking to accelerate new residential lending in Romania as the central bank is expected to lower interest rates in H2 2024. Lenders have initiated a series of offers with more favourable interest rates, below the 7% monetary policy rate set by the National Bank of Romania (NBR), according to Vlad Săftoiu, Head of Research at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.

The Romanian property market remains attractive for investments, with 65% of investors surveyed by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox saying they are looking to expand their presence in the local market.

Romania attracted around €1.2 billion worth of foreign direct investment (FDI) from real estate and construction companies during 2022, accounting for 17.2% of the total investment volume recorded in the country, according to central bank data analyzed by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

The modern office stock in regional Romanian cities is set to reach around 1.3 million sqm in the next five years if the planned projects spanning 275,000 sqm will be delivered in this period, according to a report by real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

More than 72,000 homes were delivered across Romania during 2021, which has been a record for the past 32 years, according to real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.