The long view

After decades at the heart of Belgian real estate, Serge Fautré has learned one thing above all: markets change, cycles turn, capital moves, regulations multiply; but real estate remains a business of judgement. Judgement about timing.

Judgement about risk. Judgement about people. And, perhaps most importantly, judgement about when not to panic. “There are always solutions to problems,” he says.

“You just need to keep perspective.” It is a lesson shaped by crises, transactions, boardrooms and long-term projects. As Fautré prepares to step down from his executive role at AG Real Estate, his view of the sector is neither nostalgic nor complacent. He sees an industry that has become larger, more financial, more regulated and more complex. But he also sees fundamentals that remain unchanged. “Having the right people remains essential,” he says. “That has not changed.”

“Some people thought they were making money on real estate,” he says. “In reality, they were making money on a bet that interest rates would remain low.”

“There are not many players in Belgium with real access to equity.” Financial discipline, he insists, is not the problem. Real estate is, by nature, a financial asset class. The danger lies in confusing financial management with speculation on cheap money.

The result, he believes, will be consolidation. “There are not many players in Belgium with real access to equity,” he says. “Some will have to grow. Others will simply disappear.”

The new environment is forcing the sector to rethink risk. For years, low financing costs helped developers absorb rising land prices, longer permit procedures and more complex construction requirements. That period is over. Construction costs have risen sharply, permitting has become slower and residential margins are under pressure. “In residential development, many projects are coming out with zero margin,” Fautré says.

“Some players are taking losses on certain projects and trying to compensate with better ones elsewhere.” For Fautré, the lesson is not that development has become impossible.

It is that risk must once again be understood, priced and managed. He recalls earlier models in which developers worked more often on a build-to-suit basis, taking controlled risks with identified end users or strong contractual visibility. Over time, speculative appetite grew. Today, he expects the market to return to a more measured approach.

Fautré’s view on risk is deeply shaped by experience. One moment that clearly marked him was the 2008 financial crisis, when Cofinimmo—where he was CEO—faced pressure over debt ratios, falling share prices and nervous financial markets.

Every morning, he recalls, analyst notes warned of potential breaches. Banks pushed for a deeply discounted capital increase. Fautré resisted, concerned that such a move would heavily dilute existing shareholders.

In that moment, experienced governance became decisive. The solution came through the securitisation of long-term receivables, generating cash and reducing debt without destroying shareholder value.

That same mindset still guides him. When teams come to him with a problem, his instinct is not to panic, but to ask what options are available.

Another major evolution Fautré identifies is the shift from passive ownership to active operation. He recalls a principle from Jean Franquin at Cofinimmo: “We do not have tenants, we have clients. Our wealth is our clients.” That idea has become increasingly relevant. From offices to shopping centres, parking, senior care and other asset classes, owners are moving closer to the end user.

The most resilient assets, Fautré believes, are often those where the owner or operator has a strong relationship with the client. Parking and senior care are good examples. In both cases, operational excellence matters. A good operator understands demand, service, pricing, regulation and user experience.

It is not just about owning brick and mortar. Shopping centres are another example. Occupancy depends not only on leases, but on active marketing, tenant mix, customer experience and local understanding.

In that world, property managers and advisers play a crucial role. They are no longer merely administrators. They help protect value by ensuring that the promise made during leasing is actually delivered over time.

The Covid period did not create a rent collection crisis in Fautré’s office portfolio. Tenants paid. But the long-term impact on work habits is still being felt.

For him, the debate about remote work is not only about space utilisation or corporate efficiency. It is also about the social role of the workplace.

“Working together is part of social life,” he says. “We should not underestimate that.” He worries about growing isolation in society. Families are more dispersed, digital tools replace physical contact, and even personal relationships increasingly begin on apps.

In that context, the office remains more than a functional workplace. It is one of the few remaining spaces where people of different backgrounds, ages and roles meet naturally. Mobility, of course, must improve. Commutes should not be unnecessarily difficult. But for Fautré, the answer cannot be to abandon the office as a shared environment.

For CEUSTERS, this view resonates strongly with the role of office agency and property management. The future of offices will not be defined only by square metres, but by how well buildings support collaboration, culture, wellbeing and human connection.

One of Fautré’s strongest concerns is Belgium’s ability to deliver large, long-term urban projects. Permits take too long. Political courage is often lacking. Consultation processes can be dominated by opposition, while those who support projects remain silent. Public authorities do not always defend the projects they have asked for.

He does not argue against participation. On the contrary, he believes dialogue is necessary. But the sector must become better at aligning interests, understanding objections and building support earlier in the process.

This, he believes, requires more than traditional lobbying. The sector cannot limit itself to complaining. It must understand the other side, map concerns and look for common ground.

For real estate, this may become one of the most important skills of the coming years. Projects will only move forward if developers, cities, neighbourhoods, investors and users can find a shared logic. The capacity to listen, adapt and build consensus will be as important as financial strength.

Looking back, Fautré does not speak only about numbers. He speaks about moments when complexity, timing and execution came together. He remembers a major Paris transaction at La Défense, involving an option on land, a future lease and the development of a Jean Nouvel tower. It was a remarkable operation in scale and timing, with hundreds of millions in construction and sale value from acquisition to exit in less than a day.

He also mentions BruCity in Brussels, not only as a real estate development, but as a project that required restoring dialogue with the City of Brussels.

The building itself may be imposing, he admits, but the achievement lay partly in making the project possible. He is also proud of the school programme delivered with and for the Flemish Government: 182 schools already built and another 135 under construction.