One of London’s most exclusive areas is soon to have a new landmark, 10 Portman square. Designed by London-based architects Jestico + Whiles and located in London’s West End, the building comprises 113,000 square feet of modern office space over eight floors. The development is due to be completed in April 2013.

According to a recent property survey, Hong Kong, with overall occupancy costs of £151.96 per square foot, is the world’s most expensive business location, followed by London which has an overall occupancy cost of £135.62. Tokyo was third followed by Beijing’s central business district.  

A major new development scheme is about to begin, adding a new set of offices in Old Street and contributing to the ‘Silicon Roundabout’.  The Old Street roundabout will be turned into a technology hub in a massive development that will cost over £50 million, and which it is hoped will act as an incentive to draw more business into London. 

Canary Wharf Group and Qatari Diar are set to co-develop a 5.25-acre mixed-use scheme, which will include about 800,000 square feet of office space between Waterloo Station and Hungerford Bridge. Residential space will amount to 800,000 square feet while there will be a further 80,000 square feet of new retail units. The famous 27-Storey Shell tower which is on the site will be preserved, although the plans show eight new residential and office buildings to be constructed by six architectural firms. 

Azerbaijan has recently completed its debut deal in Europe, paying £177 million for a Central London office block. The building is let to HSBC bank until 2023 and consists of 188,600 square feet in the upmarket St James district.

Research compiled by Jones Lang LaSalle has established that the number one investor in office property in the City of London is the Asian investor. This section spent about £1.77 billion on office buildings this year which equates to more than a quarter of the total invested. Since 2010 London has seen £3.5 billion invested into offices in the City of London from Asian buyers alone.

A £400-million deal is about to be made by the government of Kuwait to acquire the Bank of America’s European headquarters. No office transaction of this size has been made in England since the start of the financial crisis and this could be a prominent sign of recovery. 

Areas around Kings Cross and Euston have started to appeal to many companies in terms of location. This is largely due in part to dramatically improved rail services arising from redevelopment of the surrounding stations but it is primarily the extravagant new Eurostar development at St Pancras with the updated Kings Cross underground station which have acted as a draw to businesses. Offices in Kings Cross and Euston have become increasingly attractive and accessible as commuting into London has become much more efficient.

Business rates are the commonly used name for non-domestic rates, a tax on the occupation of non-domestic property. For each property in the rating list for its area, the local authority calculates and issues a rateable value. The rateable value is multiplied by the ‘rating multiplier’ to derive an annual bill. For example a rateable value of £10,000 and a multiplier of 40p would produce an annual bill of £400.

Southwark Council will be purchasing its own offices at 160 Tooley Street subject to approval at a council meeting due to take place on the 11th December 2012. The council managed to beat off interest from overseas investers for the 205,236-square-foot building, which is being offered for sale by HSBC Bank.