Sofia is in the top three for construction of commercial properties in Eastern Europe

Sofia ranks third among the largest cities in Eastern Europe for retail space under construction at the end of the third quarter of 2012, according to a report of Colliers International.

According to the market analysis based on retail space in 13 cities, the region Sofia takes third place with 207,000 square meters. The first position is for Moscow where at the end of the third quarter of the year, 1.035 million sq.m commercial areas were under construction. The second place is for Kiev -354,000 square meters.

The three cities form 85% of total retail space under construction in Eastern Europe.

Colliers have examined the data for Moscow, St. Petersburg, Warsaw, Budapest, Prague, Kiev, Bucharest, Bratislava, Zagreb, Sofia, Belgrade, Tirana and Athens.

Total supply of quality retail space in Eastern Europe at the end of the third quarter of 2012 amounted 15.41 million square meters. The total supply has almost tripled in the period for 2009-2012.

Commercial areas in the active phase of construction in the shopping centers fell with about 255,750 square meters in the third quarter of 2012, compared with a year earlier. Retail space in the active phase of construction in the 13 largest cities in Eastern Europe is about 2 million square meters.

Rents for retail space in Sofia, however, are the lowest in the region - € 38 sq m per month. The front seats are for Russia, where the monthly rent for luxury shopping streets in Moscow is 510 euros, and in St. Petersburg 258 euros.

In the next 12 months rent in Sofia is expected to continue to decrease, according to the report by Colliers.