As Q2 starts to draw to a close it means the summer is fast approaching. The next couple of months are going to be extremely busy as agents look to pack all of their business into 2 months as August is usually a write off. So where are we 6 months into the year? Are things really as positive as the Politicians are telling us?

It is an extremely interesting but difficult situation in the Central London office leasing market after 6 months. There are fantastic signs suggesting we are creeping back to the 2007 levels in some parts of the market, with £130 per square achieved in Kings Street earlier in the year and with the highest take-up levels since the recession there are clear signs we are moving  in the right direction. However, as every agent in Central London will tell you, there is simply not enough office space in the market!

This is down to a number of reasons; the planning changes by David Cameron allowing change of use to residential to try solve the housing problems is having a hugely detrimental effects in certain areas like Victoria and particularly West London. But the main reason is simply down to new developments in the market. With confidence back in occupiers and therefore more potential tenants in the market than ever, we are really suffering from the delay in new developments coming to the market. During the recession banks weren’t lending and speculative office developments dropped to almost nil and unfortunately this meant that no new developments were happening in Central London for around 3 years and even though as you walk around London and see more building works than ever, we are still around 12 months off from satisfying and catching up with the market. 

This news was brought to you by Morgan Pryce, a specialist tenant acquisition agent with offices in Oxford Circus and the City. Morgan Pryce specialises in search, negotiation and project management and works exclusively for tenants.