In June 2020, Newsec Advisory interviewed 31 foreign investors who collectively state that they will not minimize exposure to the Nordic market because it is seen as a stable market both from a political but also from an economic point of view.
Despite the Covid-19 situation, foreign investors are not afraid to invest in the Nordic market. According to the survey, 68% of investors expect to raise more capital for property investments over the next 6 months, confirming that there is still plenty of resources in the market and investors are willing to invest, but have, for now, chosen to observe the development of the situation, due to the crises. In addition, investors assume that the housing and logistics segments will perform best. "Based on our market research, we can demonstrate an idle rate of less than 2% in the industrial and logistics segment, which supports investor assumptions and confirms that the Corona pandemic has only accelerated the ongoing process of increased online sales and greater demand for industrial and logistics properties." Says Brian Tretow-Loof, Director of Newsec Advisory, Denmark.
According to half of the interviewed investors, the office market is expected to remain neutral.
Out of all the investors we have interviewed, half believe that the office segment will remain neutral after the pandemic phase-out, while the rest believe that the segment will be challenged after the crisis. "The corona pandemic outbreak has resulted in more people working from home, whether and how much this will have an impact on the office segment is still uncertain, however, we have seen an increase in demand for flexible offices where companies are willing to compromise the amount of square feet and pay more for less if the property has a high level of flexibility and shared facilities." says Brian Tretow-Loof. The largest office tenants are currently working towards getting their workplace ratio down to 60-70%, which is equivalent to all employees working from home on average 1-2 days per week. The survey concludes that 68% of investors expect to close a transaction within the next six months, while 87% expect to close a transaction within 1 1/2 to 2 years. The total volume of transactions will therefore be somewhat lower in 2020 than the previous record years, but at the same time this gives high expectations for 2021, provided that the pandemic is kept under control.