Office space take-up in the City stays flat
TAKE-UP of office space in the City remained at its lowest level since 2009 in the last quarter, according to new research by Equipe.
There have been no moves to offices larger than 50,000 sq ft in the last six months, with take-up of office space at just 834,000 sq ft, slightly down on the previous quarter. The number of deals also fell by three per cent quarter-on-quarter.
However, tech and media firms have driven a remarkable spike in the uptake of space in east central London. Farringdon saw an increase of 125 per cent in the three months to the end of June and the EC1 area jumped 30 per cent.
A spokesman told City PM this is largely due to comparatively cheap rental prices and an up-shoot in the number of new business start-ups taking advantage of the smaller spaces available in these areas.
Central London take up increased by 10 per cent in the second quarter, buoyed by a 22 per cent increase in take up in the West End.
This largely comprised of Google’s move to the Central St Giles development (pictured) and Double Negative’s move to 160 Portland Place, without which take up would have been flat.
Midtown take-up was five per cent ahead to 240,000 sq ft, driven by demand in Holborn.
The number of deals in Central London in total was up six per cent, with real estate adviser Equipe saying that, despite occupier caution, the market is still resilient.