The 12th edition of the Polish Real Estate Forum – the largest and most prestigious meeting for the Polish residential and commercial real estate market – will be held on 2-3 June at the Sheraton Hotel in Sopot. It will be both a time of summaries and discussions about the forthcoming challenges, as some things are about to change irrevocably in the industry.
The current situation in the real estate market involves a certain amount of uncertainty. The reality around is dynamic and difficult to predict – particularly because of the current geopolitical turbulence. However, several factors could affect the picture of the entire industry in the future – including both the office and residential sectors.
According to analysts at PKO Bank Polski, the situation in the housing sector will be strongly impacted by lower demand, which may dampen price increases slightly. The supply of new housing units may also decrease. On top of all this, the war in Ukraine may affect the market – both on the demand and supply side.
“The complicated geopolitical situation is certain to leave a strong imprint on all panels and lectures. The conference will be an opportunity for meetings and lively discussions also off-stage – we are aware that the topic of Ukraine will reverberate in them, even if there is a positive outcome to the war for Ukraine and Europe by then. This is one of the reasons why we are carrying on with PREF. The community needs meetings, talks, and exchange of views. Just as most of our customers, like the Polish Association of Developers, of which we are a supporting member, like the entire MTP Group or the Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry, we hold the view that if we are to help, we cannot slow down. We have to act – to carry out plans, adjusting them but not halting. We have to survive this crisis by showing those who caused it that they have no power over our lives, economy, and everyday life,” says Bartosz Zeidler, chairman of the board at Nowy Adres SA, the organiser of the Polish Real Estate Forum.
According to PKO data, while apartment price increases in the primary market in Warsaw and Poland‘s six largest agglomerations in the last quarter of 2021 were slower than before, they remained in double digits and stood at 10-13 percent year-on-year. In turn, price growth accelerated in the capitals of smaller voivodships. The same is true of the office market – despite several question marks that appeared over this sector as a result of the pandemic, two years after restrictions were introduced we can see that offices remain an important part of business activity for tenants and are constantly of interest to investors.
According to the estimates of the Polish Chamber of Commercial Real Estate, gross demand for such spaces in Warsaw reached 647,000 sqm, including over 250,000 sqm in Q4. This is a few percent more than in 2020 when the industry was reeling from the pandemic. In turn, 595,000 sqm of offices were leased in the eight regional markets, i.e. 2 percent more than a year earlier. Therefore, it is safe to say that demand for office space in the current year will remain on a gradual upward trend and a bigger problem will be posed by supply.
“The outlook for the real estate market is currently clouded with a great deal of uncertainty, which is why speeches by analysts – both those primarily focused on the office sector and those specializing in the residential sector – will be so important at our conference. Presentation of the findings from their research will surely clear up any doubts that participants may have about the future functioning of the real estate sector as a unitary whole,” says Bartosz Zeidler.
The Polish Real Estate Forum is the biggest and most prestigious meeting for the Polish residential and commercial real estate market. It is attended every year by over 500 representatives of companies that make up this market: developers, investors, bank representatives, architects, general contractors, building materials manufacturers, service providers, analysts and industry journalists. It is a special event, so its programme also promises to be exceptionally interesting. During discussion panels, residential developers will tackle issues including those related to the PRS market – providing a good opportunity to get up to date with the latest trends and find out why Poland draws such great interest from investors in this sector.
In addition, discussions will cover such topics as the specific character of regional markets, tax optimisation through alternative residential investments, the shaping of preferences of investment buyers in connection with economic changes, and the creation of public space in office buildings and their impact on local communities. One of the most important revolutions in the functioning of the real estate market is also the upcoming introduction of ESG reporting (ecology, CSR, corporate governance). It will soon be an extremely important aspect for the entire industry as, according to Business Insider, some estimates say that buildings – their construction, materials used and operation – account for as much as 40 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions. This issue will certainly be among the most discussed ones during the Forum, which is why the opening panel will be entirely devoted to it.
Honorary Patrons of the 12th edition of the Polish Real Estate Forum include Mayor of the City of Łódź Hanna Zdanowska, Mayor of the City of Poznań Jacek Jaśkowiak, the Polish Association of Developers, the Polish Real Estate Federation, the Wielkopolska Association of Real Estate Agents, the Polish Green Building Council. The Main Sponsor of PREF 22 is the portal Nieruchomosci-online.pl. The Silver Sponsors of the event are Deer Design, KONE, mFinanse and THTG, the Bronze Sponsors – are Cordia and Nieruchomości Orange. The Substantive Partner is MAT and the Technological Partner is 3D Estate. Media patrons include europaproperty.com, Prime Time PR, Strefa Nieruchomości and Investor Real Estate Expert.
Details and tickets at frn.nowyadres.pl
