London’s West End and The City have seen strong demand for office space to rent but the rest of the country has seen price levels slipping, with the exception of Manchester, where rents were roughly stable throughout 2010.
Cities like Leeds, Birmingham, Glasgow and Edinburgh all saw demand diminish to the extent that the cost of renting fell and DJD is expecting to see the trend continue this year as well.
However, a relative lack of supply in each of the UK’s main regional cities will see demand for office space in these areas increase over the course of 2012, the company behind the research is predicting.
The outlook for the regions outside London improved in the second half of last year and Anthony Duggan, head of research at DJD, is convinced that high rents in the capital will see some businesses considering office space in less competitive markets.
“We are expecting an improving outlook across the UK during 2011, with rental growth in London set to continue and the stabilisation witnessed in the regions during the second half of the year showing further improvement as the lack of new development allows supply to fall,” said Mr Duggan.
Driver Jonas was founded in London in 1725 and merged with Deloitte in March 2010. The company currently has offices in Slough, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Scotland, as well as two sites in central London.
Editor’s notes: In 2022, prime office rents in London’s West End reached £130 per square foot and the same quality space in the City commanded rental rates of £72.50 per square foot per year.
In Manchester, prime office rents reached £40 per square foot.
In Birmingham, the sea quality space also reached £40 per square foot per year.
Prime office space commanded £36 per square foot in Leeds.
In Glasgow, the best quality office space for rent reached £36 per square foot per annum.
And, in Edinburgh, best-in-class office space reached £40 per square foot.