It’s now been a year since Bidrento Property Management Software joined the PwC UK Scale | PropTech cohort.
Back then, many of the themes shaping real estate were still developing.
Today, the new PwC & Urban Land Institute (ULI) Emerging Trends in Real Estate Europe 2026 report confirms what many of us in operational real estate already felt on the ground:
🔵 Real estate has officially become an operating business.
🔵 Operational sectors are leading Europe’s investment rankings.
🔵 Data, automation, and platform-driven operations are no longer optional.
And this shift directly aligns with what we are building at Bidrento.
1. Real estate is now an operating business - not a passive asset class
The report states it plainly:
“Real estate has shifted from a passive financial asset to an operationally intensive business.”
This is a major mindset shift.
Income stability—not speculative appreciation—is the driver of returns.
Investors are focusing on NOI growth, infrastructure-like assets, and operational efficiency, and they are allocating capital accordingly.
For PropTech companies like Bidrento, this reinforces why end-to-end operational platforms - maintenance, workflows, financial automation, tenant engagement - are now core infrastructure.
2. Residential once again dominates the top 10 sectors
According to the sector rankings, five of the top 10 European real estate sectors for 2026 are residential models:
- Student housing
- Co-living
- Affordable housing
- Serviced apartments
- Retirement / assisted living
This matches what we’ve seen firsthand: housing demand is stable, supply is constrained, and operations matter more than ever.
PBSA is singled out in the report as “the most exciting sector” due to severe supply-demand imbalance, with some European markets facing 10–15 students per available bed.
This imbalance is exactly why operators need scalable systems to handle leases, maintenance, invoicing, and tenant experience consistently.
3. Data centres are Europe’s #1 real estate sector for 2026
For the sixth consecutive year, data centres rank at the very top.
They are described as:
- “critical digital infrastructure”
- “needs-based and operational”
- “requiring substantial operational expertise”
This aligns with a broader structural trend: digital infrastructure, energy infrastructure, and tech-enabled operational assets continue to lead capital flows.
All three top sectors - data centres, new energy infrastructure, and student housing - require daily operational management, not passive ownership.
4. Investors are doubling down on operational efficiency and data
Nearly 94% of respondents say that adapting and integrating new technology is essential to long-term organisational transformation.
AI and automation are seeing accelerated adoption:
- 73% of industry players now use AI or machine learning in real estate activities (up from 51% the previous year).
This reinforces a core thesis:
Operational assets require operational systems - and platforms like Bidrento are no longer “nice-to-have,” but essential infrastructure.
5. Europe’s top-performing sectors share one thing: they are operationally intensive
Across the rankings, the same pattern repeats:
- Data centres
- PBSA
- Co-living
- Affordable housing
- Healthcare
- Serviced apartments
All require daily workflows, compliance, automation, maintenance, tenant communication, reporting, and operational scaling.
This is the world Bidrento was built for: multi-asset portfolios, operational workflows, tenant experience, and platform-driven efficiency.
A year after PwC Scale | PropTech — the relevance is even clearer
The Scale program wasn’t generic.
It was built for PropTech scale-ups dealing with real operational complexity, cross-market expansion, and B2B enterprise sales. The conversations, pitch sessions, and in-person sessions at PwC Embankment Place were perfectly aligned with what we work on every day at Bidrento.
A big thank-you once again to Stephen Meager (GrowthBuilders), Robert Walker, and the PwC UK team for bringing together a cohort that saw where the market was moving before the headlines did.
If you want a clearer picture of where European real estate is heading next:
The full Emerging Trends in Real Estate Europe 2026 report is absolutely worth your time.
And if you want to explore how Bidrento Property Management Software can help you operate with more clarity, automation, and control - let’s connect.
