Real estate transactions in Romania increased two and a half times in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, to EUR 419 million, according to a Colliers report. And amid a favorable outlook, the figure is expected to hit the EUR 1 billion mark by the end of the year.

For the second year in a row, industrial and retail assets dominated trading activity, marking a significant shift from previous years when office assets were the primary focus, Colliers said. According to its consultants, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria are playing an increasingly important role in the decision-making process of property investors, banks, and tenants.

Anca Merdescu, Director of Investment & Debt Advisory at Colliers Romania, stated: "Compared to last year, 2024 is much more active. There are new investor names and more deals in the pipeline that have a good chance of closing this year. One of the key challenges remains the availability and cost of funding, which is currently around 6%, but we are also seeing an increased focus on the technical quality and ESG standards of properties."

The largest transaction of the year was the sale of Globalworth's industrial portfolio, which included roughly 270,000 sqm of warehouses in several Romanian cities and land for future projects, to CTP for approximately EUR 168 million. This is one of the largest industrial transactions in Romania and the biggest since the sale of Europolis Park to Singapore's GIC in 2016.

The second largest deal in 2024 was WDP's acquisition of Expo Market Doraly for around EUR 90 million.

Two other major transactions in the office market, brokered by Colliers, have had a significant impact on stabilizing market returns this year. The first involved the sale of The Landmark office park, a 23,500 sqm Class A leasable space in the Roman Market area, sold by Cerberus Capital Management and its regional partner Revetas Capital. Then there was AFI Europe's acquisition of the myhive Victoriei office building from Immofinanz, valued at approximately EUR 27 million.

Another noteworthy transaction was Scallier's sale of Funshop Park Turda to BT Property for about EUR 15 million. This is the second transaction for BT Property, a division of Banca Transilvania, and it reinforces the presence of a new type of capital in the local market.

The sale of the logistics parks owned by Global Vision and Globalworth to the Belgian developer WDP was also completed at the beginning of the second half of the year, bringing the total volume of industrial deals for the year to more than EUR 100 million.

At the Central and Eastern European (CEE) level, Romania was the top performer in the first half of the year compared to the other five major economies (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia), according to the latest H1 2024 Investment Scene report published by Colliers. On average, the region's volume increased by 29% year-over-year to around EUR 3.3 billion but fell by 41% compared to H1 2022.

The share of office transactions also declined in the CEE, accounting for 31% of the traded volume, while retail deals contributed 32%. The industrial and logistics sector ranked third, with a share of 24%.

Poland dominated regional volumes, accounting for nearly 50% of the total, thanks to a significant increase in local activity in the second quarter.

Given the current context, Colliers experts estimate regional transaction volumes of around EUR 5.5 billion for the full year 2024, roughly half the 10-year average.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

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