Market business premises in Serbia this year shows two completely different pictures. While in Belgrade they are looking for quality ones offices and new business centers are being built, in many cities in the interior of Serbia, a large number of shops remain empty.
According to the data transmitted by RTS, the value of business space turnover in Serbia increased by around 30 percent in 2026. However, this growth is not evenly distributed. Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš are getting new square meters of modern office space, while in smaller areas the supply is often higher than the demand.
A special problem is that in the interior there is almost no office space that is rented out on a "turnkey" basis, that is, space that is already equipped for a specific purpose and that the tenant can move into immediately.
"People primarily rent out square meters, not space that has a purpose and that the tenant can enter and use immediately," real estate agent Snežana Gajić from Valjevo told RTS. According to her estimate, equipping the premises for a specific purpose can cost between 30.000 and 50.000 euros, which would further increase the rental price.
One bar for every ninth resident
How big the gap between supply and demand is in certain cities is shown by the example of Svilajnec.
In that city, according to the president of the municipality, Predrag Milanović, there are about 1.070 business premises for approximately 9.000 inhabitants. This means that there is about one bar for every nine inhabitants.
Milanović connects such a situation with the policy of the 1990s, when, instead of the development of industrial zones, numerous shops were built in the expectation that the development of commerce would automatically fill the business space. Today, however, many of them are empty.
Belgrade does not have enough quality offices
In Belgrade, the situation is almost reversed. There are about 1,4 million square meters of class A and B office space in the capital, and only about five percent is vacant.
IT companies have the highest demand for offices, followed by pharmaceutical companies, law offices, consulting firms and real estate agencies.
Rental prices in A-class buildings range between 16,5 and 18,5 euros per square meter, while service costs of around 4,5 euros per square meter are additionally paid.
Real estate agent Marko Jevtić also states that during the past months there has been a greater influx of Ukrainian companies transferring their operations to Serbia.
Prices are even higher in the most modern, serviced offices. In a new business center in Belgrade, the rent, according to data reported by RTS, ranges from 35 to 40 euros per square meter.
Spaces that offer flexible lease terms, energy efficiency, parking and the ability to adapt to the needs of companies are increasingly gaining an advantage on the market.
Business centers emerge from the center
As central Belgrade locations fill up, business facilities are gradually moving to the outskirts of the city, along the main roads and in the direction of the airport.
At the same time, Novi Sad, Niš and Kragujevac are trying to catch up with the demand for modern business space.
Thus, on the business real estate market, the difference between large urban centers and the rest of Serbia can be seen more and more clearly: while in Belgrade there is a struggle for high-quality business square footage, in smaller areas the problem is how to put the existing premises into operation at all.
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