baltic states and belarus real estate market review - Colliers

Commercial real
estate market shows
promising signs
2010 could be considered as the turnaround year for Lithuania‘s economy. The
country has emerged from recession, and posted positive GDP growth in Q2 and
Q3. Meanwhile, the commercial real estate market remained rather passive due to
the slower economic recovery of the country. Although the market has been offered
the lowest number of new projects in the past decade, there have been positive
trends, which at the end of the year sparked optimism among market participants. A
decline in vacancy rates has been observed without exception in all commercial real
estate sectors. The period of rental price corrections has ended, with rental prices
have stabilizing. Favourable conditions for the objects that are attractive in terms of
location and concept emerged with elimination of discounts granted to tenants during
the crisis, and rental price increases. The improved image of the Baltic countries in
Scandinavia and Western Europe returned investors interest in the countries (for
instance, BPT Asset management established a new fund BPT Baltic Opportunity to
invest in real estate in the Baltic countries).
ramune askiniene
Director
Consultancy and Valuation Department
Colliers International Advisors, Lithuania
2011 promises to be more optimistic, although a great market rebound is not expected.
Labour market issues and significantly deteriorated household consumption, credit
market stagnation, low investment levels amongst others limit market growth
opportunities. On the other hand, increased investors interest confirms that it is still a
good time to purchase attractive objects. As a result, investors are willing to pay more,
although meeting the expectations of sellers is still difficult.
For explanations of our findings, please refer to our annual market report. We hope
that an objective assessment of the current market situation and insights for the
future development of the market presented by our qualified analyst team will be
useful and help you in planning and decision-making processes.