Lavinia Ioniță Rasmussen, NNDKP Real Estate Partner, tells Property Forum that institutional investors have constructive outlook on Bucharest's real estate market. At the same time, she expects retail, logistics and renewable energy to drive mandates for NNDKP's real estate practice this year.
Solida Capital has announced its first residential development in Romania, a boutique project in Sector 1, Bucharest, as part of a joint venture with Radox.
Gijs Klomp, Head of Business Development at WDP Romania, talked to Property Forum about the company's strategic focus on long-term tenant partnerships and built-to-suit developments. He detailed how infrastructure improvements and the defence sector are creating new industrial growth.
European investors continue to lead commercial real estate investment across the continent, accounting for 48% of activity in Q1 2026, according to BNP Paribas Real Estate data. American investors follow with 31%, while Asia Pacific investors represent just 7% and Middle Eastern investors 2%.
NEPI Rockcastle said its Q1 net rental and related income (NOI) reached €157.7 million, up 3.4% versus Q1 2025. Property NOI increased 3.2% to €155.4 million, while net revenue from energy activities rose to €2.3 million, reflecting the scaling of the group's renewable energy platform.
CEE real estate investment rebounded strongly in 2025, with volumes reaching €11.6 billion across six core markets, representing a 31% year-on-year increase according to Colliers.
The average total office fit-out costs in Bucharest increased slightly in 2025 to around €1,000 per sqm, according to data from Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. However, Bucharest remains one of the most affordable markets in CEE, with fit-out costs 18% and 15% lower than in Warsaw and Prague, respectively.
Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland, and Romania could raise labour productivity by up to 10 to 15% through wider adoption of digital technologies, particularly software and AI-enabled tools, according to a report by World Bank Group.
Commercial property investment in CEE rebounded strongly in 2025, with a combined volume of €11.3 billion across Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. This represents a 34% year-on-year increase and stands 24% above the five-year average, according to data by Knight Frank.
NEPI Rockcastle, the largest owner of shopping centres in CEE, said its net operating income rose 11.2% year-on-year to a record €618 million in 2025, while the distributable earnings increased 6.7% to €441 million.
In a video interview recorded at CEE Property Forum 2025 in Vienna, Marek Noetzel, COO of NEPI Rockcastle and incoming CEO from April 2026, shares his outlook on retail trade across the region, the company's growth strategy and his priorities for the next phase of leadership.
Retail developers continue to accelerate expansion plans across Romania, with projects totalling more than 750,000 sqm currently in construction and planning stages for delivery until 2029, according to a report by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
Romania's commercial real estate investment market recorded approximately €500 million in 2025, down 31% from the previous year, due to the absence of large transactions.
Romanian investors became the most important source of capital on the local real estate market, generating approximately 30% of transaction volume in 2025 and accumulating nearly €1.8 billion in investments over the past decade, according to Colliers' annual report.
CEE property investment reached a turning point in 2025, with transaction volumes across the region's six main markets totalling €11.6 billion, representing 31% annual growth according to Colliers' latest analysis.
Horațiu Papakonstantinou-Florescu, Chairman & CEO Romania, Hungary, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia at Knight Frank, talked to Property Forum about the dominance of lease renewals, the anticipated 2026 delivery wave, and how Bucharest's high yields and infrastructure projects continue to attract multinational tenants.
Commercial real estate companies remain optimistic about 2026, with 83% expecting revenue growth, according to a Deloitte report. This represents a slight decline from 88% last year, while 68% plan to increase expenses in 2026.
PPC Blue Romania, part of the PPC group in Romania, has signed a partnership with Dedeman, a Romanian-owned DIY retailer, for the installation and operation of electric vehicle charging stations across Dedeman's national store network, both existing and future locations.
OMV Petrom concluded a sales contract with OMV Downstream GmbH, a fully owned subsidiary of OMV AG, for part of the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) to be produced at the Petrobrazi refinery.
Raiffeisen Asset Management (RAM) manages around 15% of the financial assets of Raiffeisen Group's individual clients in Romania, almost double the market average.
In 2026, production sites in Romania are turning to power studies to understand how energy is consumed and distributed within their own installations, at the level of equipment and production lines.