European commercial real estate investor confidence grew in the second quarter of 2024 with some markets recording strong transaction volumes, according to Colliers’ latest Capital Markets Snapshot.
Ireland, Italy, Norway, Sweden and Poland posted robust growth in overall transaction volumes in Q2, helped by the return of large deals and interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank and Sweden’s Riksbank.
In Q2, there was an uptick in investor interest in hotels, student housing and life sciences assets, with demand for industrial and logistics and office assets remaining steady.
Luke Dawson, head of global and EMEA capital markets at Colliers, said: “We’re seeing the early stages of a potential rebound, but when it will take hold and how long it will continue is going to be on a country-by-country basis. Markets with a strong domestic capital base, such as central and eastern Europe, the Nordic countries and Spain, will lead the revival. Where domestic capital is not as active on the buy side the process will be more drawn out.”
Colliers expects the UK to benefit from the result of the recent general election, which has helped boost the UK’s appeal to international investors.
“The post-election period brings more stability and we’ve seen an uptick in international capital engaging with the UK market,” added Dawson. “There’s also a sense that the office market, in London in particular, is relatively undervalued at the moment, and there will be a window for the next 18 to 24 months where investors can be more acquisitive.”
Dawson said investor confidence will grow more positive in the second half of the year. “As we get more rate cuts and the political picture stabilises further, we should start seeing an increase in activity and transactions in the back half of the year,” he added.
