Real estate developers presented the “IFK Talentum 2025” award

Ernő Takács called this year’s topics particularly exciting because, as he said, the tasks required complex thinking and solutions, and it was a great pleasure to see the high-quality, imaginative and diverse entries offering unique solutions. Thus, the jury also has an increasingly difficult task every year, he noted. He praised the fact that the applicants, the real estate developers of the future, had to coordinate many different aspects and specialist knowledge, prioritizing sustainability, the concept of a livable city, and also taking into account ongoing or planned developments.

“Real estate development not only shapes cities, but also creates quality of life, so it is crucial that we educate the future generation as qualified, creative and responsible professionals today. The competition is a good opportunity for young designers to get a taste of a complex urban development process, and it is important for us to get to know their ideas, since real estate development is a profession that is constantly renewing, updating, and reacting quickly to the environment and changing needs,” said Ernő Takács. He added that Real Estate Development Day provides an opportunity every year to demonstrate how complex and exciting real estate development is. It is not only about construction projects, but also requires economic, legal and social knowledge, sensitivity, and a kind of empathy. A successful project requires, in addition to years of thorough planning and strategic thinking, the designer’s “soul”, individuality and perseverance – said Ernő Takács and wished the winners and applicants much success.

The real estate developers of the future were given exciting tasks in the competition: the intersection of Üllői út – Ecseri út is a busy, bustling area located on the border of two districts, the plans for its transport-level renewal have been completed, the track expansion of the Déli-körvasútsor is in progress, and a new railway stop is being developed at this intersection. The connection with the existing metro stop also justifies the planning of an area providing additional services. The task was to prepare usage and development proposals, with the design of a new city district.

The transformation and possible change of function of the Globe 13 office building is also one of the real challenges of the future. The house, built in 2001, is one of the elements of the Váci út office corridor. As is known, office usage habits have changed significantly since Covid, so the current owner is considering transforming the building. This could mean external and internal reconstruction, but also a change of function. Several uses could be considered depending on the environment. The applicants were tasked with proposing the best use by designing the building and its surroundings.

The winning application was the outstanding project entitled Habitat. In addition to creative solutions, the plan is characterized by the intelligent use of modern technology and significant value creation. The real estate development team, which consisted of students from BME and ELTE, chose a sympathetic construction concept, with an appropriate schedule and spectacular architectural solutions. The shared second place was won by the Viverde and Kapocs projects. The Viverde team (BME, ELTE and recent graduates) presented the site’s potential, the integration of transport links and the landscape architecture approach outstandingly, while the Kapocs (BME) project stood out with its strong analytical work, community spaces and economic calculations. The CPI special award went to the Nova project, which presented a modern and well-founded functional proposal for the transformation of the Globe 13 office building. The winning team will receive a cash prize of one million forints and a trip to the Expo Real World Exhibition in Munich in 2026. The second-place teams will receive a cash prize of 750,000 forints, and the third-place team will receive 500,000 forints.