Developers are awaiting better times

The number of real estate projects under construction is
falling further as some companies are finalising works, while
others are halting them. The investment binge of the 2005-2008
period is just a memory for real estate developers, as part of them
are coping with insolvency files or even bankruptcies, while others
prefer a wait-and-see approach, awaiting better times. In line with
a CB Richard Ellis study, shopping centres with a 60.9-ha area have
their construction works halted at present, while other projects
with a 78-ha area were scheduled, but construction works never
started. “In autumn or the first quarter of next year, new shopping
centres are likely to be started,” says Mihnea {erb`nescu, head of
DTZ Echinox real estate consultancy. “As no more large projects
have been launched since the second half of 2008 and there are no
positive signals in this sense for the near future, we believe that
starting 2011 the offer will mainly include finished apartments,”
considers {tefania Baldovinescu, head of consultancy with Colliers.