Bratislava is experiencing a development boom in the former industrial zone. (source: TASR)
While anti-pandemic measures hit the retail sector of real estate the hardest, industrial properties, where there is a strong demand from players in the field of e-commerce, are the potential winners of the crisis. The office segment was moderately affected. The demand for housing remains highly driven by a general lack of available flats, especially in bigger cities.
“Just as it has coped with the health crisis, Slovakia will certainly cope with a slight decrease in activity in the real estate market,” said Richard Urvay, director of Colliers International in Slovakia. However, he expects a slight impact on investors’ confidence. “It is questionable how big institutional players will react and whether they will prefer rather traditional markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany and France.”
The development on the real estate market in Slovakia is similar to other central and eastern European countries. Across the region, rented commercial spaces are the most affected, especially in capitals accustomed to a large supply of tourists who are currently missing.
“The investment market has slowed; some investors are opting for a wait-and-see tactics and postponing the completion of projects for a few months until the situation stabilises,” said Ľubor Procházka of CBRE Slovensko. “Some other investors were hit by the weakening of local currencies against the euro, which also resulted in the postponement of investment transactions.”
