1. Europe: Developments seek investments at global conference
At least five major international developments were among projects seeking investments this week as more than 20,000 gathered in Cannes, France, for MIPIM, the world’s largest annual real estate conference.
Developers touted projects including a new stadium in Saudi Arabia, ahead of that country’s hosting of the 2034 FIFA World Cup; an international business district in Seoul, South Korea; and a large mixed-used redevelopment in central London. Amid escalating trade tariffs and political unrest, real estate and government leaders from more than 90 countries pondered whether a full industry recovery was in store for 2025 or would be postponed to 2026 or beyond.
2. Cape Verde: African coastal islands viewed as future travel hot spot
A small group of islands off the coast of Africa could become the region’s next high-demand tropical destination for global travelers, according to analysts at a recent hotel investment conference.
The Republic of Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, an Atlantic Ocean archipelago nation of nine inhabited islands 350 miles west of the African continent and 900 miles south of the Canary Islands, is making several major changes with the goal of broadening the country’s hotel industry beyond the tour-operating model. Recent developments include the creation of an association called Macaronesia, focused on boosting travel business for several island nations in the region.
3. France: Industry leaders hesitant about real estate rebound
The cut in key interest rates after two years of sharp and sustained rises was expected to bring greater clarity to the French real estate market in 2024, but new political and economic tensions have prevented the fog from lifting.
This year’s Business Immo global survey of 233 real estate decision-makers found nearly 78% of respondents consider government economic policies to be detrimental to business development, compared with 45% last year and just 27% in 2023. Fewer than one-quarter of this year’s respondents think 2025 will be a rebound year for French real estate.
4. Germany: Investments start 2025 in slow lane
German real estate transaction volume amounted to just under €2.3 billion in February, barely more than the previous month’s tally and well below the average of the last 12 months, according to brokerage Savills.
Other analysts noted the latest political decisions in Germany have significantly changed conditions for real estate investments, with yields on government bonds reaching their highest level in two years and creating risks for property refinancings and sales. Residential deal prospects are being slowed by factors including a planned extension of rent controls, with limits for new rentals likely to remain in place until at least 2027.
5. Canada: Government defends office acquisition while selling other properties
Canada’s federal government has purchased an office property in downtown Ottawa after vowing to sell off or repurpose up to half of the office properties it owns in the national capital area. The latest deal was aimed at saving the government money on future rent but has been criticized by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, a watchdog group.
Officials said the government paid about $51 million for a two-building portfolio that includes a 14-floor office tower and a four-floor office building from seller Allied REIT. The government announced last May that it aimed to sell or repurpose up to half of its office properties in Ottawa and Gatineau, Quebec, over the next decade in the capital area as part of what it called responsible government spending.
6. US: Goldman Sachs looks to move workers to cheaper office hubs
Goldman Sachs may be a Wall Street stalwart, but the banking giant is aiming to curb expenses by shifting its real estate focus to cheaper markets.
With its “Project Voyage" initiative, the New York-based company is trying to move more of its workforce to hubs in Salt Lake City or Dallas, an effort intended not only help drive down costs but also help thin some of its over-populated departments and take advantage of a new talent pipeline. Goldman Sachs’ Manhattan headquarters accounts for the largest slice of its global office footprint, but the worker headcount there has seen little growth in recent years as its other U.S. hubs have mushroomed.
This report was compiled from CoStar’s news publications in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.