Hines seeks growth in residential and offices in Germany and CEE

Hines is focused on residential growth in Germany and CEE, while it views offices as strategic and is pursuing opportunities in the industrial sector.

Alexander Möll

Talking to CRE Media Europe at Expo Real, Alexander Möll, country head of Hines for Germany, Poland, and Czechia, expressed a positive outlook, particularly for the residential sector, highlighting the recent acquisition of Marienhöfe in Berlin, the fund's largest in the sector, structured as a forward-funding deal.
Hines also favours Class A "magnet office" acquisitions or developments in top-end locations, focusing on properties with potential for upgrades or complete renovations to meet high standards. A current project in Düsseldorf, which is 90% pre-leased, exemplifies this strategy. Hines also engages in mixed-use developments that combine office, residential, amenities, retail, sports, and healthcare elements.
In the industrial sector, they are pursuing opportunities across the risk spectrum, including core and core-plus acquisitions, as well as development-and-sell strategies.
After developing and divesting a data centre project, Hines is currently exploring two more data centre developments in Germany, aiming to secure both the operator and the end-user before proceeding to avoid speculative development.
In Poland, they are currently selling two office buildings as part of an end-of-business-plan strategy, while actively seeking new opportunities in the Build-to-Rent (BTR) and industrial/logistics sectors. "The fundamentals in Poland are quite strong. The population is well educated, and the debt rating is solid, which makes it attractive for investment. BTR is driven by high demand and a growing middle class that can afford rental rates that support strong yields for developers and investors," he explained.
Möll acknowledged the need for market optimism but also emphasized the importance of a realistic perspective. While last year’s Expo Real held hope for improvement, the current situation is more of a "reality check," and the reality isn't yet ideal. Significant positive change in 2026 seems unlikely without substantial economic and political reforms, he added. Despite this, Hines performed better than in the past two years, with a transaction volume projected to reach €700-800 mln by year-end.
Möll anticipated that Hines could divest assets that have reached the end of their business plan, including some office and industrial properties. However, they intend to retain core assets and will also consider selling stabilized, value-add properties that have undergone refurbishment. There is interest in expanding BTR schemes, with the flexibility to either hold or sell these projects depending on market conditions.

Branislav Pekić