One of the topics touched upon by the “Sector-Specific Trends, Part 1” panel held at CEDER 2025 was the state of the construction sector in Romania. Moderator Silviu Stratulat, Managing Partner of Stratulat Albulescu Attorney at Law, described the sector as still “booming”, but noted that it faces significant and complex challenges that impact the broader real estate market. Claudiu Bisnel, Managing Partner for Brisk Group, highlighted key pressure points within the industry, underscoring the need for enhanced efficiency. A primary concern is the shortage of skilled professionals. Claudiu Bisnel stated: “We experience a shortage of labour. The current Romanian market is short of 50,000 specialists, which puts a lot of pressure on quality, puts a lot of pressure on time of delivery and directly on costs”. This deficit not only strains project timelines and budgets, but also risks compromising the final quality of construction. Adding to these difficulties are bureaucratic obstacles within the permitting process. Statistics cited by Bisnel indicate that “bureaucracy in the permitting process is contributing to [a] three to six-month delay in the actual delivery of the project”. Furthermore, inconsistent interpretation of urbanist regulations by local authorities can unfavourably impact the construction process. As a countermeasure, Bisnel noted: “when it comes to [the] actual backlog of permitting issues, that you can tackle through a leaner type of management, digitalised way of looking at things. We saw that this kind of process is being implemented as we are speaking. And I think it's the right way to a more fluent way of getting permits and approvals when it comes to local authorities, leaves less way to interpretation.” Economic factors, such as inflation causing volatility in material prices and the potential impact of tax increases like VAT, also contribute to cost pressures. As Geanina Ungureanu, Head of Retail at CPI Property Group noted regarding construction projects, the VAT increase means “you're asking yourself if those prices will stay the same or we have to redo all our calculations and budgets for this development”. To counteract these challenges, Claudiu Bisnel advocates strongly for efficiency. This can be achieved through measures like modular construction and prefabrication, which reduce on-site labour needs and improve control: “Control the waste management, control the efficiency in delivery, reduce the actual labour requirement, because you produce this in a controlled environment, in a factory. You have a pre-assembled element of a building, which you can bring on site with specialists, a reduced number.” Although these measures can be seen as costly, “on the long run, there isn't any question about the efficiency brought by such a process and how this can exponentially accelerate and better, if you may, our construction environment.” Digitalisation, including BIM management, is also crucial for ironing out design risks and streamlining processes. Moreover, a “thorough due diligence process” is essential from the outset, particularly for industrial and retail projects, to identify and manage risks related to road connections and utilities, thus preventing future delays and cost overrun.