C&W: 2018 a record year for global property transactions

While predictions of a fall in the volume of real estate transactions have been made at the beginning of nearly each of the past three years, 2018 produced the highest-ever figure globally, hitting $1.75 trillion. That's according to a new report by Cushman & Wakefield, which writes that the number represented growth of 4 percent compared to 2017. C&W found that investors were targeting a wider range of markets to identify opportunities and that new investors continued to come forward. Going forward, however, the company predicts steady rental growth for the best assets but not yield compression.

In the Czech Republic, says Cushman & Wakefield's head of CEE Jonathan Hallett, 2019 is still expected to be a strong year. " The fundamentals of the market are good, with strong occupier markets, rents not overpriced, and interest rates not expected to rise. More investors have been focusing on core capital, and this should continue. In the Czech Republic, there is a lot of property on the market much carried over from the last year, so the first half of 2019 will likely be bigger than the first half of 2018."