The numbers are starting to come in for 2024. The total investment volume for key CEE countries (Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary) is forecast to be €7.7bn. Depending how you count it, that’s a couple billion higher than 2023, when spiking interest rates killed the market. Cushman & Wakefield sees a regional trend in the rising volume, pointing out that some of the largest deals in Europe across all major sectors took place here.
Key deals include Blackstone’s €470 million logistics agreement with Contera and TPG which the agency picks out as Europe’s largest logistics transaction in 2024. NEPI Rockcastle’s €780 million retail acquisitions of Magnolia Park and Silesia City Centre are among the largest shopping center deals in Europe. And the same goes for Ghelamco’s €280 million sale of a Warsaw office tower to Nordic investor Eastnine.
Michal Soták, Head of Capital Markets at Cushman & Wakefield Czechia picked out the Blackstone-Contera transaction as a deal that “underscores the strength of CEE real estate fundamentals, driven by high demand, constrained supply, and unmatched risk-return profiles in markets like Czechia and Slovakia.”
Of course, the real jump in volume came from the region’s weightiest market, points out Pawel Partyka, Head of Capital Markets Poland. “Assuming Poland reaches €4.7 bn in transactions this year, it represents a 2.5x year-on-year growth—unprecedented across Europe. The balanced performance across retail, office, and logistics is equally impressive, with each sector contributing between EUR 1.2–1.5 billion.”
Historically, CEE has accounted for ca. 4% of Europe’s total investment volumes, but early 2024 forecasts suggest this share could increase to close to 6%, narrowing the gap with Western European markets. Polish deals accounted for 62% of total volume, followed by 25% in Czechia and 9% in Slovakia. It’s worth pointing out how far things have fallen: in 2019 volume for the region hit €14bn, while even in 2022, it was around €11bn.
Cushman & Wakefield is forecasting €3.5 billion in volume for CEE in Q4 2024 and claims involvement in 53% of those transactions.
