Foreign investors are interested in the acquisition of completed or almost completed real estate projects, which regenerate money flows, while earlier the most attractive objects for them were land plots with project designs, the managing partner of Kyiv-based DEOL Partners, Ruslan Olekseyenko, said.
"At the same time, strategic investors who invest in development have changed their preferences concerning investment objects. If earlier, land plots with concepts were more attractive to them, today completed or almost completed real estate projects, which regenerate money flows, have become attractive," the company's press service said, citing Olekseyenko.
He said that there is still interest in the Ukrainian trade real estate market from European business.
"However, the key restraining factors for foreign investors... are the political instability in Ukraine and the high level of corruption," he said.
He said that the number of investors with a speculative interest in the Ukrainian real estate market has fallen.
DEOL Partners director for strategic development, Maryna Rymarenko, in turn, said that today most foreign retail operators are considering entering the Ukrainian market preferably through franchising partners, as they do not want to risk their capital.
She also said that DEOL Partners on November 19 to November 21, 2008 took part in the MAPIC, an international retail real estate exhibition, in Cannes in France, where the company presented the Mall of Ukraine trade and entertainment center project.
Rymarenko said that the project was among five best at the exhibition and was presented at the Speed Matching Investment Conference, which was held as a part of the exhibition.
"MAPIC for us was an important event, for which we prepared for a long time. Our aim is to attract up to 60% of international trade operators, most of which are not present on the Ukrainian market, to the Mall of Ukraine," she said.
DEOL Partners said that the international economic situation had impacted the structure of exhibitors and visitors of the MAPIC-2008, in particular, this year the exhibition was a site for holding talks at the leadership and company owners' level, and the involvement of medium-level managers and intermediaries in decision making has fallen.
The stands of 18 Ukrainian companies, including the stands of 11 developing companies, were present at the MAPIC-2008. The total number of exhibitors at the exhibition was 1,050.
DEOL Partners provides broker services, transaction support services, design management, investigation and analysis, fund attraction, property estimation, planning and architecture services. The Leonardo business center in Kyiv is one of the exclusive projects of DEOL Partners.
DEOL Partners is a ULI (Urban Lands Institute), ICSC (International Council of Shopping Centers), EBA and an ACC member.
