That we are living in extraordinary times is something the professional real estate market is aware of like no other. Whether developers, building owners, investors, consultants or users, they are all facing particularly challenging times. Colliers, a global leader in property services and investment management, realises this too. In this article, David Vermeesch, Managing Partner at Colliers Belgium, takes us through the opportunities and challenges that the sector is currently facing and how at Colliers they are dealing with them.
“These are challenging but exciting times and correct advice is important now more than ever”
Vermeesch himself has been in the real estate business for 25 years and has been through several crises in that period. But the crisis we find ourselves in now, he says, is unique and complex because of the various challenges that are converging in a relatively short period of time. “We are facing a special confluence of circumstances. The combination of the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, the rise in construction prices due to the war in Ukraine, the increase in interest rates, as well as the ever-increasing pressure on Sustainability, creates uncertainty and confusion for all parties around the table,” he says.
Because of the corona pandemic and the success of working from home, all office users are adopting their own ‘New Way of Working’ . This is a difficult balancing act for the HR, Facilities and Finance departments. “Office users are increasingly looking for a sustainable, easily accessible and motivating workplace, where it is enjoyable to work (together). For instance, it is important to have sufficient meeting facilities, the right range of open and closed office spaces and recreational space,” Vermeesch comments.
Naturally, owners, investors, asset managers and developers are facing this as well. “At Colliers, we are the link between the different parties and thanks to constant development and improvement of our services, our team of experts can give the right advice to anyone at the table.” However, the latter does not happen overnight, adds Vermeesch, and he says there is constant ‘re-analysing’ and ‘repositioning’.
Since Colliers operates globally, it can call on the expertise of colleagues in other countries in addition to local research. After all, the aforementioned challenges and trends seen in our country are also to a great extent encountered in the rest of the world. “These are both challenging and exciting times and that makes the right tailored advice more important than ever, for all players in the real estate market. Colliers is the right partner for that,” Vermeesch concludes.
Find out more about these topics in the debate ‘Outlook for Real Estate in Belgium’ – 17/09/2024 at 09:15.
View the full programme of the summit here
