Vacancy fell below 1% for the first time ever on the Czech industrial sector in the third quarter of 2022. Colliers reports this was despite a bumper crop of new completions. Developers finished off a total of 18 new buildings during the period, adding 511,100 sqm to the stock of modern industrial space. The Czech market now includes 10.65 million square meters of modern stock. “Supply chain issues related to the Covid-19 pandemic and the shortages and increased costs of materials as a result of the war in Ukraine, also contributed to the exceptional Q3 result,” says Josefína Kurfürstová. She added that prime rents around Prague have continued to rise, albeit less quickly, with the current range between €7.25 – €7.50/sqm. But it’s not just a Prague thing, as rents regularly surpass €6 in Brno and in the Pilsen region. How can rents keep rising with so much new space hitting the market, you ask? Because 95% of it is already leased upon completion. It should also be noted that one-third of the Q3 total was due to the completion of Amazon’s facility at Panattoni Park Kojetín in the Olomouc region.
Prague prime office yields have softened 25 basis points to 4.75% according to Fraser Watson of Savills. It’s part of a broad decompression across the European market, according to Savills, ranging from 10 bps drops (in Frankfurt) to 35 bps (in Madrid). Watson says equity investors are seeking to take advantage of a situation in which finance is often either too expensive, or simply unavailable. These factors are driving prices down in virtually all markets. “However, with the relatively small size of the [Czech] market, and the dominance of open-ended funds with no fixed expiry date, the number of opportunities for equity / low leveraged buyers to source a ‘bargain’ is limited.” Watson says the market is slowing as a result, rather than sparking a flurry of activity at an adjusted price point. “We expect to see price discovery unfold gradually over the coming months.”
Logicor has appointed Ronald van der Waals as its new Managing Director for Central and Eastern European. The move takes effect from January 2023 and adds to his current role of Managing Director of Northern Europe. Van der Waals will be responsible for driving the portfolios’ growth in what Logicor sees as a key region. He’s taking over from Bartek Mierzwiak who built the company’s activities in Central and Eastern Europe over the past eight years. Van der Waals joined Logicor in 2022 and brings over a decade of industry experience, having previously worked as Managing Director at CBRE Investment Management, leading office, retail and logistics in the Netherlands, and as a fund manager for the CBRE Dutch office and retail fund.
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