REAL ESTATE IN ROMANIA
In 2021, the Romanian real estate market performed above expectations in a very challenging year. The total volume invested in real estate assets in Romania reached €916 million, a slightly higher level when compared with 2020 (€914 million), illustrating the overall resiliency of the Romanian investment market during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The most active segment in 2021 was the Office sector (44% market share out of the total volume transacted), followed by the Industrial (30%) and Retail (20%) sectors, the three asset classes remaining the most sought-after ones by investors. In total, a number of 54 income-producing properties were transacted in 2021, an average of €17 million per property.
The overall increase of the investment volume is even more impressive in the entire CEE/SEE context, as the Romanian market was the only one which recorded a growth in 2020 compared to 2019. As such, real estate properties with a cumulative value of €9.9 billion were transacted in the region in 2021, an almost 29% decrease from the 2019 volume.
Romania showed strong signals in 2021 that it has reached a new level of market liquidity, with total investment volumes again being close to €1 billion, even though the year was marked by the challenges of the pandemic. Although Romania remains a much smaller market than Poland, it shortened the gap between total volumes when compared to Hungary and the Czech Republic.
Located in the heart of the city centre, Cushman & Wakefield Echinox’s Bucharest office helps our clients to respond to the growing opportunities the local real estate market offers – both within the city and throughout the CEE and SEE regions.
WHY ROMANIA?
Economic growth
- Romania recorded a 5.2% GDP growth in Q1 2022, one of the highest in the EU (Eurostat);
- Industry, retail and the IT&C sectors were the main drivers of the GDP growth contributing to more than 50% of the total growth (National Institute of Statistics);
- Bucharest was responsible to 24% of the total Romanian GDP in 2021, having a nominal GDP per capita of €32,400, a value 2.5 times higher than the national average (National Commission of Prognosis);
- Romania also enjoyed 9 consecutive years of economic growth, showing enough signs to suggest it fully recovered from the 2009 – 2010 economic crisis, while 2020, a year plagued by the Covid-19 pandemic only resulted in an economic decline of -3.9% compared to the overall EU average of -6.2%;
- In terms of purchasing power parity, Romania’s GDP per capita represented 79% of the EU average in 2021, a significant increase from a corresponding value of 39% in 2006, the year before the country’s joined the EU (Eurostat).
Employment
- Romania had an unemployment rate of 5.5% in April 2022, a level that remained quite stable even during the pandemic, with no major surge of unemployment being recorded in the past 12 months;
- 5,031 million people were employed in Romania at the end of March 2022, an increase by more than 830,000 compared to August 2010 (National Institute of Statistics);
- The industrial sector employs around 26% of the total sector, Romania having one of the highest % of the workforce involved in the industrial output in the EU (Eurostat);
- The IT&C sector more than doubled in terms of employees since 2010 (National Institute of Statistics);
- 560,000 students enrolled in Romanian universities in 2020 (National Institute of Statistics);
- Foreign language proficiency: 97% of Romanian high school students study 2 or more foreign languages; 90% of the university students are proficient in English (ABSL, Eurostat).
IT specialists
- 129,400 IT specialists (excluding the Communication sector) in March 2022 (National Institute of Statistics);
- Average net salary €2,015, the highest figure for any sector, 2.5 times higher than the national average, benefitting from an income tax exemption (National Institute of Statistics);
- Romanian software companies such as UiPath (the first Romanian unicorn) or Bitdefender (an internationally recognized antivirus provider) made significant breakthroughs on the global level in terms of reputation and efficiency.
Fastest internet speed
- 9th highest fixed internet broadband speed in the world and the highest in the EU (Speedtest Global Index October 2021).
Strategic base for IT companies
- Important IT companies such as Oracle, IBM, Microsoft, HP, Ericsson or Electronic Arts have been present on the local market for more than 10 years and are some of the largest office occupiers in country;
- Oracle is the single largest office presence in Romania (more than 60,000 sq m of rented space) and has its second largest office in Europe, while Electronic Arts has its largest office in Europe in Bucharest;
- Newcomers such as Amazon, DB Technology, Deloitte Technology or the service center of the London Stock Exchange Group further illustrate the importance and the potential of the Bucharest office market that is expected to continue its growth in the next 5 years.
What we offer
Cushman & Wakefield Echinox is a top real estate consulting company on the local market and the exclusive affiliate of Cushman & Wakefield in Romania, owned and operated independently.
With more than 28 years of real estate market experience, the team of over 60 professionals and collaborators provides expertise across all aspects of the market and strategic advice to help investors, developers, property owners and occupiers respond to the region’s opportunities.
Working with both public and private sector clients across Romania and the SEE and CEE regions, we help unlock the benefits of selling, leasing or buying premium residential properties, offices, industrial and logistic units, retail and leisure assets and land plots, based on specialised valuation or research reports and supported by strong property management through Asset Services and project management through Project Development Services teams. We also facilitate access to investment and capital markets that can drive projects forward, helping transform our towns and cities into great places.
Our specialist teams offer particular areas of expertise in the following sectors:
- Commercial real estate (offices and retail)
- Food & Beverage
- Banking/ Financial Services
- Premium Residential (agency, valuation)
- Technology, IT & Communication
- Automotive
- Industrial & Logistic
- Land
- Hospitality
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