CBRE: European Investors shift focus to Germany and CEE for property acquisition in 2011

Investors have shifted preferences on the acquisition of property investment products in 2011. According to a CBRE survey presented at this year’s MIPIM fair, 24 percent of investors are looking at CEE as the most attractive area in Europe, compared to only 16 percent last year.

“Following CBRE analyses and permanent discussions we had with decision-makers, the strong appetite for property investment in CEE, including Romania, was shown. Consequently, 24 percent of the 350 interviewed see this area as being the most interesting in Europe,” said Laura Bencze, Research Manager with CBRE Romania. “Pan-regional trends apply accurately to the local context as follows: retail products represent the main investment destination (in Romania 60 percent of the total investment volume of 2010 was made for commercial centers) and the prime products catch investors’ attention as opposed to secondary ones (in Romania approximately 73 percent of the 2010 transactions were made for properties with superior investment character),” she added.

 Globally, the survey showed an increase in investors’ interest for CEE and North America areas over Western Europe. The retail segment surpassed the office one in investment attractiveness, while investors remain cautious about secondary properties, and over 70 percent of them expect the yield-up for these properties to remain at 2010 levels or higher in 2011.