Nevertheless, the global financial crisis makes itself felt also on the Austrian investment market. Portfolio sales are replaced more and more by individual sales, since the investors pick the realties more carefully. In the third quarter of 2008, all investments amounted to approx. 400 million euro - 300 million less than in the strong second quarter of 2008, and 200 million less than in the comparison period of 2007. In the face of the crisis-ridden financial market, CB Richard Ellis do not expect any noteworthy increases in the fourth quarter.
While in 2007, the transaction volume was at approx. 2,8 billion euro, a result of approx. 1,8 billion is to be expected this year, claims the market report of NAI Otto. This decrease of the transaction volume is cushioned by the sale of "Shopping City Süd": approx. 140,000 square metres are sold to the French-Dutch investor Unibail-Rodamco for more than 600 million euro. Without consideration of that single transaction - the largest by far -, the low investment volume becomes abundantly clear.
All in all, it can be said that the sellers' market - that has subsisted for years - is transforming into a buyers' market. The following months will see an increase of single transactions. Properties that have been bought for much money in the course of mergers will form the basis for the transaction volume of the rest of 2008 and of the following year.
Decreasing demand leads to rising yields
Due to the decreasing demand for investments, the top yield for office buildings slightly rose, as compared to the beginning of the year, and is now at 5 per cent. According to CB Richard Ellis, it will rise by another 20 basis points until the end of the years - which is also true for yields in good and average locations. "Especially in these difficult times, investors appreciate the stability of Austria.
Mainly German and other Western European investors that are now investing much more conservatively, increasingly take Austrian realties into their portfolios," says Andreas Ridder, CEO of CB Richard Ellis Austria. DTZ even expects the yields to climb to six percent in the medium term.
The demand for office spaces
The companies' demand for open, communicative office spaces on Vienna's office market is continuingly high; the trend is still unbowed. "I think it is very encouraging that the office market has not yet showed any weaknesses," explains Michael Ehlmaier, CEO of CPB. "The business trend has not presented any negative consequences so far." The rental performance in the first half-year still (170,000 m²) was clearly high above the production of new spaces.
With 110,000 m², the amount of leased spaces remained roughly on the same level from the second to the third quarter of 2008. Until now, the only single closings in 2008 were the leasing of approx. 18,200 m² in "TownTown" by Wiener Stadtwerke Holding, and the leasing of approx. 14,000 m² in "Euro Plaza" by Kapsch TrafficCom. Moreover, TUI, AESCA, D.A.S. Rechtsschutzversicherung or Andritz had a considerable share in the good result.
However, small customers still make up the majority of rental agreements: in 60% of all leasings, the leased s pace was less than 1,000 square metres, and in a third of all cases even less than 500. The office market report by NAI Otto says that this year, apart from the tertiary sector, the sectors of industry/commerce/trade are very profitable, but that the sectors of infrastructure and spare time are also worth mentioning.
