Investors rush back into NI’s commercial real estate as economy picks up

Commercial real estate investment in Northern Ireland has rebounded and will see £ 300m in transactions this year.

This is the message from agents CBRE NI, who said the sector had rejuvenated in 2021 after a quiet 2020 when volume had declined due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

So far this year there has been around £ 234 million in investment activity, while another £ 66 million is either offered or currently on the market.

That number has already exceeded the £ 136 million in transactions recorded last year, which is a sure sign that the market is in good shape.

Gavin Elliott, senior director, capital markets at CBRE NI, said the economic recovery had brought investors back.

“Over the year we saw a dramatic increase in investor interest in real estate across all sectors, mainly driven by the low interest rate environment and continued improvement in rental markets and the wider economy,” he said. “In addition, real estate investor sentiment will continue to strengthen amid inflationary pressures across the UK economy.”

Signs of activity this year also show that the office sector accounted for the bulk (55%) of the transactions recorded, a figure that is in line with evidence from a number of large companies who have reiterated the importance of the office over the past few months.

Retail has been the second largest sector by investment volume so far this year, but CBRE NI expects it to be nearly the largest investment sector by year-end, with interest in retail parks being particularly strong.

“It is particularly interesting that there is a lot of activity on the office market and that companies have recognized the importance of a basis for cooperation, collaboration and team building. The retail sector also had a strong quarter and we expect this to continue as interest in retail parks grows. “