Money Buzz! Europa

Category: Real Estate

  • Castellum in real estate transaction with the City of Gothenburg

    Castellum in real estate transaction with the City of Gothenburg

    Castellum is selling a property to the city of Gothenburg in exchange for development rights in connection to Västlänken’s future Station Centralen.

    The municipality acquires the property Kobbegården 152:1 and Castellum is at the same time allocated land allotment for a building right of approximately 20-30,000 sq.m. BTA for office and retail space including one of the entrances from Västlänken’s future Station Centralen.

    The agreed purchase price for the property Kobbegården 152:1 amounts to SEK 23.5 million.

    ”I see it as a typical example of a win-win, a good deal for both parties. We get to contribute to urban development in the city center while also offering the city an important piece of the puzzle in southern Gothenburg”, comments Henrik Saxborn, CEO of Castellum AB.

  • Arabian developer Dar Al Arkan launches its first project in Europe

    Arabian developer Dar Al Arkan launches its first project in Europe

    Dar Al Arkan, the leading real estate development company in KSA, has announced the launch of its first European residential project.

    The 500.000 sqm luxury development will be located in Bosnia and Herzegovina within a forest just 30 minutes from the country’s capital, Sarajevo. The project is slated to break ground in the early part of 2021.

    The company has secured the municipal and federal approval on this project which will be the largest single real estate project in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

    The project will incorporate contemporary villas inspired by local architecture and feature stylish interiors and spectacular views. Facilities will include a clubhouse, a hotel and spa, a gym, food and beverage outlets and a children’s playground. 

  • SIF Banat – Crișana takes over the 540.000 square meters IMGB platform

    SIF Banat – Crișana takes over the 540.000 square meters IMGB platform

    SIF Banat – Crișana bought the shares held by Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction in Doosan IMGB.

    The transaction, involving a land plot with an area of ​​540.000 square meters, the largest land plot ever traded in Bucharest, was brokered by Crosspoint Real Estate.

    ”Although we are more selective with investments in the real estate market, this opportunity caught our attention immediately. We thoroughly analyzed the offer and we just as quickly came to the conclusion that it falls within the investment criteria we are looking for” said Bogdan Drăgoi, President of SIF Banat – Crișana.

  • Romania: 85% investors active in the land segment expect to close a deal in 2021

    Romania: 85% investors active in the land segment expect to close a deal in 2021

    About three quarters of investors active in the land segment have completed land deals in 2020 or expect to close ongoing deals by the end of the year, according to a survey conducted by Colliers International on the land market among more than 90 professionals active in this real estate segment.

    About 60% of respondents to Colliers International’s survey in the land segment decided to move ahead with all or some of the deals that were already in progress this year, while 19% even sought diverse perspectives to initiate new transactions in the past months.

    In terms of 2020 market activity, 73% of investors interviewed  have closed land deals in 2020 or expect to close one by the year end.

    ”Land transaction activity seems to be settling into a new normal. 85% of those recently surveyed responded that they expect to close a land transaction in 2021. How much of this is scientific prediction, as opposed to mere hope, remains to be seen”, says Sînziana Oprea, Director Land Agency at Colliers International.

    Almost in line with the spring survey, the interest to further acquire land is quite evenly distributed across sectors, with most of respondents placing residential (31%) or retail (25%) land types on their top choices.

    In terms of the evolution of land prices, the perception regarding the evolution in 2020 was fairly similar in the spring version and the autumn survey.

    Respondents do not see any sharp changes in either direction, rather on a case by case basis in most cases and with the balance tilted rather the downside.

    The outlook for 2021 shows a clearer twist towards a decline, with about 60% of respondents having a perception of prices cooling off over the next year, to a small (30% of respondents) or large extent (similarly, 30% of respondents).

    With all uncertainty regarding the dynamics of the land market in the current epidemiological context, 62% of investors expect the overall real estate sector’s situation will become satisfactory by the end of 2021.

    Land market players are, however,  more optimistic when it comes to their own company, with 29% expecting to get back on track by end-2020, another 24% expecting things to sweeten by mid-2021 and 23% in the second half of next year.

  • Romania: Real estate investments in 2020, 27% higher than those recorded in the whole 2019

    Romania: Real estate investments in 2020, 27% higher than those recorded in the whole 2019

    Almost two thirds (62%) of real estate investors confirm interest for acquisitions of new projects, both in Bucharest and regional cities, and are currently ready to buy at more favourable conditions, given the new economic context generated by the Covid-19 epidemics, according to a survey conducted by Colliers International on the investment market among nearly 50 real estate companies representing investment funds, developers, asset managers and banks.

    Investors continue to show the most interest in industrial and logistics projects, with optimism increasing since April, when Colliers conducted a similar survey.

    The share of respondents stating they want to better understand the situation before making a move has dropped from 67% in April to 30% in October.

    Moreover, the percentage of investors ready to ”buy at more favourable conditions” has increased from 23% to 62%.

    The share of market participants looking to expand their portfolios both in Bucharest and regional cities far outweighs that of those seeking an exit, according to another positive chart in the report.

    Around 57% of respondents with assets/focus in Bucharest are looking for opportunities, as are 32% of respondents with assets in regional cities.

    Regarding the financing availability, there are some improvements since the April survey conducted by Colliers, though the majority of investors (55%) still expect a short-term worsening, versus 74% in the April survey.

    Meanwhile, investment volumes on the local real estate market reached nearly 820 million euro in Romania in the first three quarters of the year, up by 45% versus 2019’s same period and 27% more than in all 2019, making the best three quarters in the last decade, with office assets accounting over 90% of volumes.

    While there is some inertia at play, it is encouraging that the year’s biggest deals – the sale of the NEPI Rockcastle office portfolio for over EUR 300mn to AFI Europe and the sale of Floreasca Park to the Fosun/Zeus JV for over EUR 100mn – were both finalized in August, in spite of the pandemic.[HA1]

    A recession with a much swifter recovery

    The investors are still looking at a recession with a much swifter recovery than that of 2009, with the real estate segment being resilient against this backdrop.

    The main issue on the mind of real estate market participants is the uncertain global economic backdrop (51% of answers), followed by concerns about Romania’s fundamentals, like its fiscal imbalances (40% of answers) and uncertainties about real estate in general (38% of answers). This suggests a fairly difficult backdrop for conducting deals, but it appears that general concerns weigh a bit more than Romania’s specific problems.

  • Chinese real estate investors are no longer dominating the central London market

    Chinese real estate investors are no longer dominating the central London market

    Buyers from France made the largest international purchases in the central London real estate market in the first nine months of 2020, accounting for 11% of all transactions involving foreign buyers.

    It is a major change after the Chinese buyers dominance, who accounted for 8.3% of foreign purchases between January and September 2020, compared to a share of 15% in the first nine months of 2019, according to real estate company Knight Frank.

    French buyers were followed by buyers from Hong Kong and the US, who were tied for second, each making up 9.2% of all home sales to foreigners in central London.

    The share of British buyers who made purchases in the real estate market in central London rose to about 59%, compared to 47% between January and September 2019.

    Last month, real estate sales in the UK reached a record high, amid a continuing boom in the real estate market.

  • The European Union wants to renovate 35 million buildings by 2030

    The European Union wants to renovate 35 million buildings by 2030

    The European Commission announced on Wednesday its intention to double the rate of buildings renovation in the next ten years, in order to increase their energy efficiency and accelerate the transition to climate neutrality, DPA reports.

    This would mean that by 2030 35 million buildings could be renovated and up to 160.000 additional ”green” jobs could be created in the construction sector.

    Buildings are currently responsible for around 40% of EU energy consumption and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions. However, only 1% of buildings are subject to energy-efficient renovations each year.

    In order to meet the Commission’s September 2020 target of reducing emissions by at least 55% by 2030, the EU must reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 60%, energy consumption by 14% and energy consumption by heating and cooling by 18%.

  • Families in Hungary will receive up to 10.000 USD to renovate their home

    Families in Hungary will receive up to 10.000 USD to renovate their home

    The Hungarian government will give up to three million forints ($ 9.693) to each family as help to renovate the house, in order to stimulate the recovery of the economy after the coronavirus pandemic, Reuters reports.

    ”Families with at least one child will be able to recover half the cost of renovations, up to three million forints,” said Family Minister Katalin Novak.

    The aid provided by the state will cover the cost of works to improve the house energy efficiency, to renovate the bathroom or kitchen, and expand the home.

    The announcement comes a week after Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that Hungary would apply a reduced VAT rate of 5% to housing construction projects by the end of 2022.

  • JTRE receives EUR 105 million loan for new Eurovea apartments

    JTRE receives EUR 105 million loan for new Eurovea apartments

    VÚB banka and UniCredit Bank have provided a EUR 105 million syndicated loan for the construction of Eurovea’s extended residential part.

    The project will include approximately 500 apartments in Eurovea Tower – Slovakia’s very first skyscraper – and waterfront Eurovea Riverside residences. This loan is one of the highest granted for a Slovak development project in recent years.

    70% of apartments have already been sold

    Launched to market last summer, 70% of Eurovea Tower and Eurovea Riverside apartments have already been sold.

    Construction work broke ground in December 2019, and underground floors are currently being built.

    The Eurovea expansion project also includes two office buildings with 40.000 sqm combined leasable area, 25.000 sqm additional retail space, and 1400-car underground parking.

    A new 25.000 sqm waterfront park will environmentally expand the popular Danube promenade, and a new activity park will revitalise the area below Apollo Bridge.

    Pribinova Street will be transformed into a tree-lined city boulevard. The ribbon should be cut at the enlarged shopping centre in 2022, with the whole project completed in 2023.

  • Rents up by 14.2%, house prices by 25.0% since 2010 in EU

    Rents up by 14.2%, house prices by 25.0% since 2010 in EU

    Over the period 2010 until the second quarter of 2020, rents increased by 14.2% and house prices by 25.0% in the European Union, Eurostat reports.

    When comparing the second quarter of 2020 with 2010, house prices increased more than rents in 16 EU Member States.

    House prices increased in 23 Member States and decreased in four, with the highest rises in Estonia (+100.5%), Luxembourg (+85.8%), Latvia (+77.3%) and Austria (+75.9%).

    Decreases were observed in Greece (-31.0%), Italy (-13.2%), Spain (-5.6%) and Cyprus (-3.0%).

    Different pattern for rents

    When comparing the second quarter of 2020 with 2010, prices increased in 25 EU Member States and decreased in two, with the highest rises in Estonia (+135.8%), Lithuania (+105.4%) and Ireland (+62.3%).

    Decreases were recorded in Greece (-25.2%) and Cyprus (-4.8%).

  • U.S. new home sales jump 108% over the last 10 years

    U.S. new home sales jump 108% over the last 10 years

    Data presented by Buy Shares indicates that the United States’ new home sales annual rate has grown by 108.45%. The growth was recorded between 2010 and 2020.

    The highest sales were recorded this year at 697.542 as of September 28th, a growth of 2.9% from last year’s 677.386. Over the last decade, the lowest sales were registered in 2011 at 309.853, a drop of 7.40% from 2010’s 334.624.

    According to the research report: ”The rise in new home sales is a good indicator considering that the United States real estate market was among the worst hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The high sales show a rising momentum as the economy continues to recover from the pandemic.”

    The research also overviewed the sales relating to the existing homes where the annual rate jumped by 128%. The highest sales were recorded this year at about 1.3 million. Last year, the figure stood at 1.2 million. The lowest sales were recorded ten years ago at 577.774.

    An overview of the new home median sale price shows a spike of 46.96%

    The existing home median sale price had a growth of 62.08%. In 2020, the new home sale median price was $332,560, while ten years ago the figure stood at $219,484.

    On the other hand, the median sale for existing homes stands at $280,134 while ten years ago, the price was $174,843

  • The House Price Index in Italy increased by 3.1% in Q2 2020

    The House Price Index in Italy increased by 3.1% in Q2 2020

    In the second quarter of 2020 the House Price Index increased by 3.1% compared with the previous quarter and by 3.4% compared with the same quarter of the previous year (it was +1.7% in the first quarter).

    The increase on annual basis of the House Price Index, was due to either the prices of new dwellings (+2.7%) or those of existing dwellings (+3.7%), both of them accelerating in comparison with the previous quarter (they were +1.0% and +1.9% respectively).

    The increase of the House Price Index occured in a context of sharp contraction in sales volumes (it was -27.2% the rate of change on annual basis registered for the residential sector in the second quarter of 2020 by the Observatory of Real Estate Market belonging to Tax Office).

    The strong growth in prices of residential property consolidated the trend started in the second half of 2019 and it was referred to contracts signed between April and June but whose conditions were mostly established before the lockdown.

    The drastic drop in volumes of sales involved the first part of the quarter and it was largely reabsorbed in June, without prefiguring a generalized and persistent decline of the demand such as to influence the short term evolution of prices.

    The increase on quarterly basis in the House Price Index (+3.1%) was due both to the prices of new dwellings and to those of existing dwellings, that increased by 2.0% and by +3.3% respectively.

    The increase of the House Price Index on annual basis involved all geographical areas. In North-West and North-East it showed wide increases (+5.5% and +4.1% respectively) followed by South and Islands (+2.3%), whereas Center recorded a lower growth rate (+0.9%).