Central London office demand roars back to life as West End occupancy booms
Central London office take-up has rebounded back to pre-pandemic levels this year and has even surpassed the ten-year average.
Occupancy in the heart of the capital bounced back to pre-Covid levels during the 12 months to the end of 2022’s second quarter, according to data from real estate advisor CBRE.
Take-up for offices hit 12.7m sq ft, a boost of 153 per cent versus the same period last year.
What’s more, office occupancy also exceeded the ten-year average by five per cent, as workers have returned to their desks in the city in droves.
After being hammered hard amid Covid-19 lockdowns, the West End has seen one of the speediest recoveries across major European office markets, CBRE said on Wednesday.
In the entertainment destination, take-up reached 4.9m sq ft, an increase of 149 per cent compared to the same period last year and a 24 per cent increase on the ten-year average.
Bosses are also keen to expand their footprint, with more occupiers growing rather than shrinking, out of those moving from one building to another. Some 39 occupiers took more space.
Banking and finance firms saw office take-up smash the CBRE’s records, hitting 1.4m sq ft.
Although working-from-home and hybrid work are still en vogue, demand for office space is “robust,” Simon Brown, CBRE’s head of UK office research said.
“Although many occupiers are using this opportunity to rationalise their estates, over the last year more deals have involved growth than contraction,” he added.
“The received wisdom is that hybrid working will significantly impact office demand. This data clearly challenges that narrative.”