EuropaProperty has concluded the 5th edition of the prestigious CRE Real Estate Awards at the Intercontinental Hotel in Hungary’s capital city. The gala was met with resounding enthusiasm from the winners and their esteemed guests. This year’s event drew an eager crowd, uniting prominent real estate developers, investors, and market professionals from Central Eastern Europe. They gathered to witness the presentation of 26 coveted awards throughout the evening.

The remarkable quantity and calibre of nominations underscored the region’s robust property markets, resulting in several companies securing multiple awards. WING, a versatile investor-developer, emerged as the standout performer, clinching four awards, including distinctions in residential and office development, as well as the coveted title of Investor of the Year and the Residential Development Award for the Kassák Passage project by Living.

The Company of the Year accolades were bestowed upon top-tier developers, investors, and professional service providers in the Central Eastern European region for their exceptional achievements in the past year. Judging criteria included their overall market impact, service quality, market innovation, commercial triumphs, ESG leadership, and market outreach.

CBRE, the international property advisory firm, achieved a remarkable hat-trick in the Agency, Project, and Property Management categories. Newmark VLK Hungary received recognition from the jury for their substantial contributions to commercial real estate, securing the titles of Professional Service Provider of the Year and Tenant Representation awardee. HelloParks triumphed with the Warehouse/Industrial Developer and BTS Developer awards.

Project of the Year winners were assessed based on design excellence, building efficiency, location quality, ESG compliance, and commercial success. The judges determined that this year’s premier office development was the meticulously renovated Academia by ConvergenCE in the heart of Budapest. At the same time, Panattoni City Dock Törökbálint was crowned the finest Warehouse Project.

The recently lauded Academia by ConvergenCE garnered additional honours in the Office Project and Refurbishment Project categories, further highlighting its status as a stellar example of revitalizing older structures to meet the exacting standards of modern tenants in historic Budapest. In the hotel sector, which is witnessing a resurgence in confidence, the Luxury Hotel Project accolade went to Hotel Prezident Palace in Belgrade, Serbia.

The region’s development pipeline across all sectors remains robust, with a selection of promising future projects acknowledged on the shortlist. Ultimately, the top prize went to the office development, Atenor’s Baker Street in Budapest. The best BTS Project went to INPARK Nagykanizsa for Honeywell in Hungary.

While investments in the region experienced a slight dip, notable transactions did transpire. The standout among them, GTC’s divestment of Forest Greens in the Hungarian regional city of Debrecen, earned accolades from the judges, signalling a maturing and deepening market.

The Professional of the Year honour was bestowed upon Ferenc Gondi, Managing Director of CTP Hungary. The prolific warehouse and industrial real estate developer has built a significant footprint in the entire region. CTPark Belgrade City secured the title of Industrial Project of the Year.

In the realm of retail, several prominent retailers contended for the Retailer of the Year award. F&B retailer Fruitisimo, which is in the midst of a region-wide expansion, claimed the coveted title. This award acknowledged retailers active throughout the region for their innovation, expansion, market impact, market share, concept and design, and commercial triumphs.

Among the major company award recipients were Erste Group Bank as Bank of the Year, NKO Partners as Law Firm of the Year, CPI FM for Facility Management Firm of the Year, and the influential flex office sector was recognized through the Serviced Office Provider award, once again won by New Work. Workcloud24 earned the distinction of Proptech Provider of the Year.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the winners on behalf of our sponsors, judges, and attendees. The groundwork is already laid for next year’s event, promising an even grander celebration of excellence.

Sponsors and Partners for 2023: Premier Partners GTC, President Palaz Belgrade. Award Sponsors Panattoni, WiredScore, Newmark VLK Hungary, and CDDI. Corporate Table Partner Inpark, HelloParks, CEE Flex Office Partner New Work. ESG Partner workcloud24. Venue Partner Intercontinental Budapest Hotel.