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Rise in commercial property demand
Following a report today from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) indicating that occupier demand for offices and shops across the UK is rising for the first time in more than two years, with London leading the recovery, William Naunton, partner at international law firm Eversheds comments:
“I am not certain that there has been a sustained upswing in tenant demand. Rents have become a lot more realistic and therefore good quality space is letting, particularly in high quality retail locations in the West End. However, the underlying demand for offices is not yet there. Whilst there is a limited supply of good new office space coming to the market over the next year or two, there is an abundance of second-hand space and it will take some time for the secondary market to soak this up.
“I do not believe that there are yet any grounds to predict an imminent recovery in office rents across the City and the West End anytime soon. Having said that, I think rents are unlikely to slide much further than they already have and maybe just maybe we are starting to see the bottom of the ubiquitous "U" curve. The investment market, on the other hand, is a wholly different story.”
For further information please contact williamnaunton@eversheds.com
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