Program

08:30 – 09:00 | Arrival Coffee

09:00 – 10:15 | Office: No Market for Cowards

Optimists say now’s a great time to build, because the lack of new office supply means Warsaw rents are set to rise. But how much money is still locked up in failed projects? And when it comes to distress, who will blink first: banks or developers? Isn’t cutting off lending to most developers for new space the correct, rational approach? This debate will cover not just current demand levels for offices, but the broader issue of true construction quality levels, and why investors are still scared about anything but prime space.

10:15 – 10:55 | Are Retailers Kidding Themselves?

Just because economists are excited about Poland’s economy doesn’t mean its consumers will be. How many shoppers are actually visiting malls these days, and how much are they really buying? New retailers claim to be interested in taking space in malls, but existing tenants are trying every trick in the book to get out of paying. Will failing malls spoil the market for new schemes by under-cutting rents? And will the new, leaner reality mean that developers have to settle for lower profits margins? What’s the minimum return developers can accept?

10:55 – 11:15 | Networking break sponsored by Eurohypo

11:15 – 11:45 | Residential Rumblings: Pressure on Prices Continues

There’s still a lack of homes and apartments, but that doesn’t mean consumers will buy at any price. How much pressure are banks now putting on unfinished, or unsold schemes to slash prices? Couldn’t their go-slow approach of hiding their problems just end up delaying recovery by years? As for developers, if prices are lower now, will they have to compromise on quality to bring in buyers? This group debate will consider the main arguments for and against financing and developing new projects, and whether lower mortgages could successfully get consumers back into buying mode.

11:45 – 12:45 | Logistics: Crash and Burn Logistics Sector Down, and Still Out

The industrial sector was the first to derail in the current crisis, and there’s no guarantee it will be the first to come unstuck. If developers are desperate to lease up thousands of square meters of empty space, how can developers of new warehouses compete on rent? And if construction prices really have fallen, why can’t tenants demand lower rents as a result? Have developers been forced to lay off their development teams as they shift to property management mode? This discussion will also consider how much Poland’s economy would actually have to grow to bring vacancy levels down to manageable levels.

12:45 – 13:30 | Lunch