(Published May 2011 and last updated August 2026) The demand for office space in London has grown significantly, a new survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has found.
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In its recently released UK Commercial Market Survey, RICS found that in the first quarter of this year, 43 per cent more surveyors reported an increase in demand in the commercial property sector rather than a decrease.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, it is London’s financial services industry which is fuelling most of the demand for more office space.
This demand, and the lack of supply, is also benefitting the South East region, which has seen increased demand as well, according to the survey.
However, the survey also noted that the rise in demand seen in London has not been replicated in the UK outside the capital.
Simon Rubinsohn, RICS Chief Economist, said: “London still appears to be where most of the activity, whether in the investment or occupiers markets, is taking place. This is reflected in rising rental expectations, especially in the prime office sector and a healthy recovery in capital values.
“The survey does encouragingly suggest that demand to take up space is growing outside of the capital but not at a sufficient pace to change the mood on the rental outlook.”
And the UK construction industry is not expected to pick up either in the near future, according to RICS.
Kaye Herald, RICS Oceania Managing Director added: “The UK still has some hard roads to travel before coming out of its current economic slump. Restricted lending and increased building material costs, along with insufficient demand, are holding back any form of short-term recoveries in construction; however, compared with other asset classes, commercial property still remains an attractive offer for investors.”
Meanwhile, Stuart Fraser, Policy Chairman at the City of London Corporation, recently said that as a financial centre London was “the envy of the world”.
Editor’s notes: In Q4 of 2022, there was 8.6 million square feet of active demand in Central London from occupiers.
The total amount of office space leased across Central London in 2022 was 10.1 million square feet, which was an 18 per cent increase compared to the previous year and slightly below the 10-year average of 10.3 million square feet.
The most active sector involved in office leasing across Central London was the banking and finance sector, which accounted for 27 per cent of office leasing deals in 2022, followed by the professional services sector at 24 per cent and the technology, media and telecoms (TMT) sector, which accounted for 17 per cent of the total. Notably, the TMT sector accounted for 29 per cent of letting activity in 2021.
In August 2026, Property Week reported on Cushman & Wakefield’s latest Marketbeat Central London Offices report, noting that Central London under-offer office space hit its highest level since 2007 in the second quarter of 2026.
The total space under offer in Q2 hit 4.4 million square feet, and there was a 28 per cent quarter-on-quarter rise in office take-up to 2.4 million square feet in Q2, while 77 per cent of activity involved grade-A space, reflecting the ongoing ‘flight to quality’ by occupiers.
The West End accounted for 1.11 million square feet of office lettings, while 989,000 square feet was leased in the City and 324,000 square feet was transacted in east London.
The agency stated that the strongest indicator of market confidence was the volume of space under offer, which was up 51 per cent on the first quarter of the year.
“The record volume of space under offer is a clear sign of occupier confidence,” said James Campbell, international partner and head of London office leasing at Cushman & Wakefield.
“Businesses may be taking longer to make decisions, but they are still committing to London and increasingly beginning their searches earlier to secure the best grade-A space before supply tightens further. This is further evidenced by five off-plan pre-lets in 2026, either committed to or under offer.”
Tech occupiers were a driving force in the market, accounting for 25 per cent of H1 take-up, with AI businesses responsible for around 60 per cent of that tech office space and a 15 per cent share of total central London take-up.
However, the agency stated that it anticipated that H2 take-up would be underpinned by financial, professional services and legal occupiers.
In the same report, the agency stated that Central London office investment volumes also improved during Q2, with £2.06 billion of office assets traded, up from £1.94 billion in Q1. This was below the H1 2025 and five-year H1 averages, but the firm said momentum was building. The £3.13 billion in assets under offer also indicated an increase in deal volumes.
Chris Bennett, head of London offices capital markets at Cushman & Wakefield, said: ”The first half of the year saw an increasing shift towards investments with scale, with larger lot sizes driving more than half of all activity.
“UK buyers led the way, but strong international capital from Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific, together with increasing activity from institutional capital seeking core returns, speaks to the conviction that is returning to this market.”