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Colliers International has arranged Central & Eastern Europe’s largest commercial real estate transaction to-date in 2009 — the sale of the Deloitte House for €117 million. The newly constructed, 21,000-square-meter, Class A office building — located in the central business district of Warsaw, Poland — is also the city’s first certified green building. The property officially opened this month.

Colliers represented property owner Skanska, the world’s fifth largest construction company, on the landmark transaction. Clifford Chance acted as legal advisor to the seller. The buyer was a fund managed by Deka Immobilien, a German-based international investment management firm.

Colliers also serves as property manager for the fully leased building. The global financial services firm Deloitte is the anchor tenant.

“Deloitte House is a best-in-class product in the European Union’s best performing economy,” said John Banka, a director of Colliers International in Poland, who arranged the transaction together with colleague Neil Gregory-Eaves, a director of Colliers International in Central & Eastern Europe (CEE). Gregory-Eaves commented “with known Skanska quality, an excellent CBD location and Deloitte as an anchor tenant, the new owner is well-positioned for long-term success.”

"While investment volumes in CEE remain low, as the global economy appears to stabilize, we are witnessing renewed institutional and private capital interest in core assets with multiple bid situations returning on some offerings," said Gregory-Eaves. "The interest is largely coming out of Germany on both the debt and equity side. Vendors needing to raise capital in Poland are also benefiting from a return of refinancing avenues which are an attractive alternative to the very opportunistic bids of recent months."

Skanska and Deka reached a preliminary sale agreement in September 2008. Originally called Atrium City, the building was renamed Deloitte House when the firm signed on as the anchor tenant, taking 14,600 square meters.

The sale ranks as the fifth largest office sale in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) in 2009 to date, the year’s largest transaction in Poland, and one of the top 12 office trades globally, according to data supplied by industry research firm Real Capital Analytics.

The fourth largest commercial real estate services firm in the world, Colliers has a leading presence in CEE, including Poland, which has seen a relatively strong economy of late, unlike most EU nations. Amongst other positive macro economic dynamics, per capita debt levels in Poland are low compared with Western Europe and North America, serving the economy well.

Poland's economy grew by 0.8 percent in the first quarter of 2009 even as neighboring countries have fallen into recession. Poland's export prowess has led the nation to become one of the great success stories of former communist bloc economies. In 2008, it ranked 22nd in the world with more than $190 billion in exports, ahead of Australia and India, according to the CIA Factbook.

Colliers International recognized more than a decade ago the opportunities Central and Eastern Europe provided. Colliers operates three offices in Poland, located in Warsaw, Krakow and Wroclaw.

Source : Colliers