The warehouse market in Poland has proven to be immune to the pandemics. In Q3 2020 alone, the developers provided for use nearly 680,000 square meters of new warehouse space. As a result, the total warehouse resources is now more than 20 million square meters. Investing in warehouses for lease is presently one of the most effective investment options. Poland is becoming an increasingly important production and logistic hub for the Western Europe. Dynamically developing companies are more willing to lease warehouse space than build their own storehouses. Between July and September 2020, the volume of leasing transactions totalled 1.28 million square meters. Logistics operators leased the most warehouse space (29% of all transactions), followed by chain stores (23%). The highest demand was recorded in the Silesia, Wrocław, Central Poland, Poznań, and Tricity. On each of these markets, the leasing transactions for over 100,000 square meters were concluded. Conveniently located warehouses and a long term lease contract offers investors an opportunity to diversify their investment portfolios. When properly managed, such a capital investment ensures a much higher ROI than a residential apartment rental. The basic rates range from EUR 2.50-3.80/square meter/month for BIG-BOX modules, to EUR 4.00-5.25/square meter/month for SBU (Small Business Units) in urban areas of the largest agglomeration.*There is a number of risk factors that affect profitability of such an investment, therefore a decision to buy or build that type of property should be made after thorough consideration and analysis.
Considering a favourable standing of the retail, as well as industrial and manufacturing sectors, and the market growth forecasts, leasing warehouse buildings is expected to generate satisfactory profits to the owner of such properties. The growing popularity of e-commerce, omnichannel sales, as well as tendency to narrow business specialisation translate into a higher demand for warehouse spaces. For a modern warehouse to be a success, it needs to be conveniently located. Particularly attractive are the warehouses in industrial areas near a national route or motorway, or in the vicinity of the largest urban agglomerations. In the decision making process, potential lesses consider also individual requirements dependent on the characteristics of the business they run. Export companies, import firms, manufacturing and various retail businesses are expected to look for different storage conditions. Meeting individual needs of particular users may result in more rapid returns on investments. Another important factor in the case of commercial properties investments is the technical condition of the building, as the businesses are required to satisfy a number of strict regulations when it comes to storing their products. Tricity is particularly attractive due to its geographical location and transport accessibility facilitated by a well-developed infrastructure. The region boasts diversified economy, based on the one hand on traditional sectors such as shipbuilding, oil refining industry and construction, and on the other on emerging sectors connected with new technologies, IT or electronics. Another key factor is availability of highly skilled workforce educated in the top academic centres. Development-friendly policy and incentives for investors offered by both state and local authorities play an important role, too.
Technical specification constitutes an appendix to the lease agreement (pre-let) of the commercialised plot – along with the plot and building layouts and serves as a basis for drafting an executive design by the contractor. Therefore, the investor is provided with an optimized lease offer and the warehouse that meets the lessee’s expectations. Technical specification includes: dimensions of the warehouse building (space, height, column grid, zoning, etc.), dimensions and fit-out standard for social and office premises, specification of types and number of dangerous goods (ADR), mezzanine parameters (if any), specification of expected temperature in warehouse buildings, specification of cooling parameters, environmentally-friendly solutions (BREEM and LEED certificates). The expected ROI is stable, with a relatively low risk. That results from a customized design that considers all investor’s needs.
Article by LBC Invest