2021 is set to be a year of slow accumulating sub- and nonperforming loans (NPL). The depth of impending loan defaults and insolvencies across Europe will be decided by the fate of government support schemes and insolvency law moratoria, which will come under huge pressure. The risk to the real estate market, therefore, is palpable.

A growing consensus among analysts and commentators suggests that real estate asset allocators will spend most of 2021 focusing on “beds, sheds and meds”.

The world has huge challenges ahead of it. The first and foremost question on everyone’s mind is whether the good news we have heard on vaccines can be translated into a solution that will rid the world of COVID-19, or at least substantially lessen its impact.

The arrival of 5G coverage in Europe is imminent. The UK is currently on track to get the majority of the country under 5G networks by 2027, while Germany could unroll 5G by 2025 to most of its citizens.

Germany is the focus of three funds that have attracted recent attention from investors.

Non-listed European real estate eased back into positive territory in the third quarter of 2020, raising hopes of increasing investor confidence.

Savills has predicted that investment into the Dutch real estate market will have only declined by 10 percent in 2020, compared to the country’s average annual investment volume.

The UK has been named the No. 1 location for residential investment during the next 12 months, according to a survey of investors, developers and asset managers.

Investors interest in German retail assets is rapidly drying up and a lack of transactions have made it difficult for vendors and buyers to assess the impact that the COVID-19 crisis has had on valuations.