Hottest six months ever for Polish offices
Office & mixed-use developmentjournalist
Nearly 723,000 sqm of modern office space was leased. This included a high volume in Warsaw, where 391,400 sqm was leased. In regional markets leasing activity was also high and was greater than in 2016. “Total demand in H1 2017 among regional markets was a strong 331,400 sqm, which is 24 pct up on the same period last year. This result is fairly similar to the demand recorded for Warsaw,” said Łukasz Dziedzic, a consultant in the research and consulting department at JLL. Outside Warsaw, the greatest demand in H1 2017 was seen in Kraków, Wrocław and the TriCity which came to 98,300 sqm, 91,700 sqm and 73,800 sqm respectively. In total, this constitutes 80 pct of the regional demand for office space. As in previous years, the largest agreements were most often signed by companies from the business services sector.
These included a 21,700 sqm renewal and expansion by Atos Global Delivery Center Polska in Business Park Kraszewskiego in Bydgoszcz, Millenium Bank’s renewal of its 18,000 sqm lease in Warsaw’s Harmony Office Center, a pre-lease by Crédit Agricole of 15,500 sqm in Business Garden in Wrocław, and Energa Group’s renewal of a 15,100 sqm lease in Olivia Business Centre. Other big leases (between 13,000 sqm to 14,500 sqm) included transactions by Brown Brothers Harriman, Citi Services Center Poland, Alior Bank, AstraZeneca and Capgemini.
Łódź is still the market with the lowest vacancy rate (6 pct), followed by the TriCity (7.8 pct) and Wrocław (8.5 pct). The highest vacancy rates are in Szczecin (14.3 pct), Warsaw (13.9 pct) and Katowice (12.7 pct).
During H1 2017, total office stock outside Warsaw grew by 188,400 sqm. At the same time, 131,400 sqm was delivered to the Warsaw market. Currently a total of 1.8 mln sqm is under construction in Poland's major markets, including Warsaw. Major cities outside Warsaw account for over 1 mln sqm, which is a record level for Poland’s regional markets. “That volume may seem high, but the high level of absorption of new office space allows for cautious optimism in regards to the leasing of upcoming office developments”, says Karol Patynowski, the director of regional markets at JLL.
An open door to redefining the commercial real estate market in Poland
An open door to redefining the commercial real estate market in Poland
Walter Herz
The investment slowdown in the commercial real estate sector that we have been observing in Poland for over a year is primarily the result of the tightening of monetary policy arou ...
The retail sector is not slowing down
The retail sector is not slowing down
Walter Herz
The pandemic, conflict in Ukraine as well as inflation and high interest rates that recent years have brought have reshaped the real estate market around the world. The global slow ...
Retail parks – current opportunities
Retail parks – current opportunities
Avison Young
Over the last few years, retail parks in Poland were mostly developed in smaller formats, around 5,000 sqm, either adding to the existing retail landscape or introducing modern ret ...