According to “Serbian Economist”, in the first half of 2026, Serbia became the largest source of foreign capital directed toward real estate purchases in Montenegro, according to data from the Central Bank of Montenegro (CBCG).
From January through June, foreign investors invested 237.77 million euros in Montenegrin real estate, which is 3.89% more than during the same period last year. Overall, gross foreign direct investment inflows into the country totaled 457.37 million euros, meaning real estate accounted for about 52% of all FDI inflows.
Serbia took the lead with 55.75 million euros, or 23.45% of all foreign investment in Montenegrin real estate.
Germany took second place with 22.9 million euros, and the United States came in third with 20.84 million euros. Switzerland contributed 18.5 million euros toward real estate purchases, and Turkey contributed 16.34 million euros.
Against this backdrop, the continuing decline in the role of Russian capital is particularly noticeable. In the first half of the year, only 5.37 million euros came from Russia for the purchase of Montenegrin real estate, placing it in tenth place. Poland and Belgium, among others, now rank higher than Russia in the list.
This trend began to take shape as early as last year. In the first quarter of 2025, Russia fell out of the top five largest markets for real estate buyers in Montenegro for the first time and ranked sixth. For 2025 as a whole, the volume of Russian investment across all sectors of Montenegro’s economy fell to 33.98 million euros, of which approximately 17.8 million euros went to real estate. By comparison, in the years 2020–2024, Russian capital was traditionally among the country’s largest sources of foreign investment.
However, it is not entirely accurate to refer directly to “Serbian citizens” or “Russians who purchased real estate” based on these figures. The CBCG methodology considers the country from which the payment originated, which may not correspond to the citizenship of the ultimate buyer or beneficiary. For example, a Russian citizen may pay for a property from an account in Serbia, the UAE, or another country. Therefore, the data primarily reflects a shift in the geography of financial flows in the real estate market.
According to Experts.news, residential real estate and institutional leasing became one of the fastest-growing segments of the Central and Eastern European investment market in the first half of 2026.
The residential/living segment accounted for 19% of investments in commercial real estate in the CEE-6, compared to just 7% a year earlier, according to Colliers data.
Thus, its share nearly tripled in less than a year and approached the levels of the traditionally largest real estate classes—offices and retail properties.
One of the most telling examples was Poland, where the largest transaction in the history of the local PRS (institutional rental housing) market took place in the first half of the year.
Vantage Development acquired 18 completed Resi4Rent projects for 575 million euros. The portfolio includes 5,322 apartments in Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław, Gdańsk, Łódź, and Poznań.
This transaction reflects growing interest among large investors in residential properties intended not for the resale of individual apartments, but for long-term professional leasing of entire portfolios.
This model is widespread in Western Europe, but in Central and Eastern Europe, the institutional rental market is much younger and has more room for growth.
Interest in the segment is driven by urbanization, high housing purchase costs, labor mobility, and growing demand for professionally managed rental housing in the region’s largest cities.
According to Colliers, with total investment in the CEE-6 region amounting to 5.8 billion euros, the market is gradually becoming more diversified, and residential/living has already become one of the top four investment sectors.
The Romanian commercial real estate market attracted approximately 300 million euros in investment in the first half of 2026, compared to about 400 million euros during the same period last year, according to the Colliers CEE Investment Scene H1 2026 report.
Romania accounted for 5.4% of total CEE-6 investment volume, despite the fact that the country accounts for about 18% of the aggregate GDP of the six economies under review. According to Colliers, this indicates significant potential for further growth in the Romanian investment market.
Offices accounted for about 60% of Romania’s investment volume in the first half of the year, marking the highest share for this segment since 2022.
However, the market structure may shift in the second half of the year due to large transactions in retail and other real estate sectors.
Romania continues to offer higher yields than many more mature markets in Central Europe. In Bucharest, the prime yield stands at about 7.5% for offices, 7.75% for industrial and logistics properties, and 7.25% for shopping centers.
By comparison, yields on high-quality properties in Warsaw, Prague, and other more liquid capitals in the region are at lower levels.
Colliers notes that the decline in transaction volume in the first half of the year does not necessarily indicate a deterioration in the market’s fundamentals. A number of large transactions were in the final stages of completion after the end of June.
In particular, the sale of the MAS retail real estate portfolio to AFI Europe was completed in the third quarter. If the deals currently in progress are finalized, Romania’s total investment volume for 2026 could approach 1 billion euros.
This would be only the second year since 2007 that the Romanian market has reached this level, notes Robert Miklo, Head of Capital Markets at Colliers Romania.
Colliers operates in more than 70 countries, employs approximately 28,000 professionals, and has roughly $110 billion in assets under management.
Office real estate regained the top spot among commercial real estate investment sectors in Central and Eastern Europe in the first half of 2026, according to data from Colliers.
Offices accounted for 29% of total investment in the CEE-6, up from 23% a year earlier. With a total market volume of EUR 5.8 billion, this corresponds to approximately EUR 1.7 billion in investments.
Retail real estate became the second-largest segment, with a 27% share, up from 21% in the first half of 2025.
Investor interest in residential and “living” properties grew even faster. Their combined share rose from 7% to 19%.
At the same time, industrial and logistics real estate—which was the largest market segment just a year ago—saw its share decline from 31% to 17%. This was due not only to changes in activity within the warehouse market itself but also to the rapid growth of transactions in other real estate classes.
Colliers notes that in the office segment, investors are primarily seeking modern buildings in prime locations with high energy efficiency and a stable stream of rental income.
The situation is becoming more challenging for outdated office buildings. They must either undergo modernization or be considered for repurposing.
Thus, the structure of the CEE market is gradually changing: after several years of logistics dominance, capital is once again flowing more actively into traditional offices and retail real estate, while institutional housing is emerging as a major investment segment in its own right.
Czech capital was one of the most active sources of investment in the Central and Eastern European real estate market in the first half of 2026, according to a Colliers study.
The total volume of investments by Czech investors in the region is estimated at approximately 1.9 billion euros. The presence of Czech capital was particularly noticeable in Poland, the largest investment market in Central and Eastern Europe.
Investors from the Czech Republic accounted for 23.6% of all investments in Polish commercial real estate from January through June. Germany accounted for about 19%, Polish capital for 11.5%, U.S. capital for 10.6%, and Hungarian capital for 6.8%.
The Czech Republic itself, meanwhile, remained the second-largest market in the CEE-6. In the first half of the year, deals totaling over 1.4 billion euros were concluded there. This is less than the record 2.2 billion euros for the same period in 2025; however, according to Colliers’ assessment, the market remains one of the most stable in the region.
Yields on premium office properties in Prague are estimated at approximately 5.25%, on prime warehouse facilities at around 5%, and on shopping centers at around 6%. These are among the lowest capitalization rates among the largest markets in Central Europe, reflecting investors’ relatively high valuation of Czech assets.
The activity of Czech capital in neighboring countries is part of a broader trend. Colliers notes that in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) markets, the influence of not only global funds from the U.S. and Western Europe but also investors from Central Europe itself is growing.
This is gradually fostering the development of a distinct regional investment capital capable of sustaining transactions even during periods when major international funds adopt a more cautious approach toward the region.
Investments in commercial real estate across the six largest markets of Central and Eastern Europe reached EUR5.8 billion in the first half of 2026, increasing by approximately 7% compared with the same period last year, according to the Colliers CEE Investment Scene H1 2026 report.
The study covers Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria. The investment volume was above the average for the first halves of the past five years, which amounted to EUR4.6 billion, and above the ten-year average level of EUR5.1 billion.
Poland became the largest market, where the volume of transactions exceeded EUR3 billion. It accounted for around 52% of all CEE-6 investments. The Czech Republic ranked second with more than EUR1.4 billion, while Hungary attracted almost EUR600 million, showing the best first-half result since 2021.
According to Colliers, the market recovery differs from previous investment cycles. Capital is returning selectively, with investors giving preference to properties with stable income, good locations, high energy efficiency and long-term demand from tenants.
Offices became the largest segment, followed by retail real estate, residential properties and institutional rental, as well as industrial and logistics real estate.
Colliers forecasts that by the end of 2026, the volume of investments in CEE-6 commercial real estate may reach EUR12.5-13 billion, compared with EUR11.6 billion in 2025, and approach the peak levels observed before the pandemic.
Among the main risks for the market, experts cite high interest rates, rising refinancing costs, geopolitical tensions, weakness in German industry and energy costs. At the same time, additional investment opportunities are being created by infrastructure projects, the defense industry, the energy transition, artificial intelligence, reindustrialization and the relocation of production closer to European consumers.
Colliers is a global professional services and investment management company operating in more than 70 countries. Its annual revenue amounts to around $6 billion, its workforce totals around 28,000 people, and assets under management amount to approximately $110 billion.
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