Market benchmarks: what "€/sqm" means in a listing
In the 2025–2026 reports of the major real-estate consultancies, rents for modern industrial and logistics space around Bucharest sit roughly between €4 and €5 per sqm per month for large floor plates in logistics parks, with the north (Otopeni, Ștefăneștii de Jos, A3, DN1) among the most expensive submarkets because of the airport and motorway access. For small units under 1,500 sqm, and especially those that include finished offices, the price per square metre rises — typically to €5–7 per sqm, sometimes more in new buildings.
The headline price, however, is only the beginning. In practice an industrial tenant's monthly bill has three components, and listings usually mention just one.
1. Base rent
The rate per square metre multiplied by the lettable area. Watch two details: whether the area is usable or gross (the difference can be 8–12%), and whether offices are charged at the same rate as the warehouse or separately at an office rate. An "office mezzanine" included in the price is not the same thing as 575 sqm of finished offices with air conditioning and four restrooms.
2. Service charge
In logistics parks, a management fee is added on top of rent to cover security, common lighting, internal road maintenance, snow clearing and administration. Depending on the park, it can add €0.7–1.5 per sqm per month, so a €4.5 rent really lands at €5.2–6. In a standalone building on its own plot there is no service charge: the yard, parking and gate belong to the tenant.
3. Utilities
This is where differences are largest and hardest to see from a listing. Useful questions at the viewing:
- How is the warehouse heated? An unheated warehouse is cheaper to rent but may be unusable for sensitive goods or for people in winter.
- Is water from the mains or from a private well? A licensed well with pump and filtration means water costs close to zero.
- Are meters on the building, or are utilities re-invoiced? Re-invoicing through a manager usually adds a margin and delays.
- What electrical capacity is available, and is it three-phase? If you run machinery, upgrading later costs money and time.
Worked example: 1,093 sqm in Otopeni
Our property at 58 Odăii St. is let at €5,950 + VAT per month for 575 sqm of renovated offices, 518 sqm of heated warehouse, the yard and parking. Divided by the total usable area of 1,093 sqm that is roughly €5.4 per sqm — for a property where more than half the area is finished offices, not warehouse. No service charge, water from the property's own well, a 50 kW boiler on the building's own meter.
An equivalent module in a northern logistics park — say 1,000 sqm of warehouse with 10% offices — would start at €4.5–5 per sqm rent plus €0.8–1.2 service charge, so €5.3–6.2 per sqm, for 100 sqm of offices instead of 575. This is not a calculation rigged in our favour; it shows that you must compare what you get, not just the number in the listing.
What else moves the price
- Lease length. At 5 years or more, landlords usually offer better terms than at 3.
- Truck access. A road-authority permit for direct access from the ring road is hard to obtain; a space where the truck has to park on the street is, in practice, a smaller space.
- Visibility. Frontage on a national road or ring road and an advertising pylon have value for companies that sell.
- Room to expand. Land available behind the building means you won't move in two years.
Bottom line
In 2026 a decent warehouse north of Bucharest really costs between €5 and €7 per sqm per month all-in, and the difference between a "cheap" and an "expensive" listing is often in what the listing doesn't say. Always ask for rent, service charge and the utility billing method on the same sheet — and compare monthly totals, not €/sqm.
