The office market is at the forefront of rising demand in the commercial real estate market in Minsk. Colliers International has predicted the office supply in the capital of Belarus will triple in 2008 -2009, bringing total office space from 92,200 m[sup]2[/sup] to 325,350 m[sup]2[/sup]. At the end of 2007 only two Class A business centres were in operation in the market. The vacancy rate in the city is almost zero.
The office market is at the forefront of rising demand in the commercial real estate market in Minsk. Colliers International has predicted the office supply in the capital of Belarus will triple in 2008 -2009, bringing total office space from 92,200 m2 to 325,350 m2. At the end of 2007 only two Class A business centres were in operation in the market. The vacancy rate in the city is almost zero.
In 2008 - 2009 the retail market is expected to see an additional 109,000 m2 coming on the market. The industrial sector also faces a shortage of modern supply. With small built-to-suit sites of around 2,000 to 3,000 m2 typical of the market, rising demand has put pressure on rents. The pipeline for 2008 - 2009 is for another 132,000 m2 to come onto the market but as most of it will be built in 2009 rents are expected to rise further.
Mikhail Gradovich, managing director at Colliers International in Belarus, commented: 'Belarus, as Europe’s leading country in terms of vehicular freight transportation, requires modern warehouse facilities. With the commercial real estate sector in Minsk in an active growth phase, investors are paying more attention to those sectors, such as the warehouse sector, that are potentially more profitable. The Government has also made some decisions to attract foreign investments to this real estate sector by allocating development sites to those investors interested in constructing large logistics facilities.'
