Tuesday, 8 September 2026
Over the past 20 years, Romanian investors have acquired commercial real estate assets with a cumulative value of EUR 2.066 billion, according to an analysis by Fortim Trusted Advisors, a member of the BNP Paribas Real Estate Alliance. As much as 69% of this amount has been invested since 2020, highlighting the increasingly important role of domestic capital in the real estate market.
During the first part of the period under review, particularly throughout the 2000s, Romanian investors had only a sporadic presence in the market, with some years recording no significant acquisitions involving local capital.
“Romanian capital has entered a new stage of maturity. While 10 to 15 years ago local investors tended to appear only occasionally in commercial real estate transactions, today there are Romanian buyers who consistently assess income-generating assets and compete directly with regional and international investors. For entrepreneurs who have accumulated capital through their core businesses, commercial real estate has become a natural way to diversify their investments, preserve capital and generate recurring income over the long term,” said Nicolae Ciobanu, Managing Partner – Head of Advisory at Fortim Trusted Advisors.
The first major acquisition involving Romanian capital was recorded in 2010, when a Bucharest-based investor acquired Tiago Mall in Oradea, which was insolvent at the time, for EUR 30.5 million.
In the years that followed, Romanian investors gradually moved from opportunistic acquisitions towards a strategy of capital diversification through income-generating commercial properties. Office buildings, shopping centres and retail units, retail parks and industrial properties consequently became a distinct investment category for local entrepreneurs and investors.
This trend accelerated after 2020. The peak was reached in the fourth quarter of 2022, when Romanian investors deployed EUR 525.4 million into commercial real estate, accounting for approximately 90% of the capital invested in the Romanian real estate market during that quarter. Acquisitions by Pavăl Holding played a significant role, with the company purchasing eight office buildings that year for a combined value of approximately EUR 470 million.
