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London's West End seems to have become the most expensive office space in the world, according to Knight Frank's latest global real estate research on 105 cities. The West End topped £85 per sq ft in late 2010, a 31% increase from the start of the year. This was ahead of the £83.67 per sq ft in Tokyo, which is seeing falling rent levels. The City of London was in 7th place, up from 12th place, with prime office rents of £55 per sq ft. - (04-05-2011)
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London office deals in 2010 are now 22% up - in terms of space taken - on last Christmas. CityOffices research has identified just over 11.1m sq ft of office deals in central London this year. This is the first rise in deals-done since take-up peaked in 2007. Recent pre-lets to Bloomberg, BNP Paribas and JP Morgan, have helped drive a strong final quarter of this year.
The take-up of Grade A recently constructed or refurbished space also shows a slight increase by 10%. Deals signed on prime space in central London account for 4.2m sq ft in 2010, compared to 3.8m sq ft in 2009.
The City of London has dominated deals this year accounting for 5.1m sq ft, or 46%, of total take-up. The West End saw just 1.8m, or 16%, of deals signed, with the remainder of lettings mainly focused on Docklands and ‘fringe’ locations.
Financial services came back strongly in 2010 and accounted for over 44% of space let. The next best performing sectors are professional services, media, and insurance, which together took 25% of space let.
The late surge in deals this year, and the large amount of space expected to be signed up in early 2011, means that the London fit-out market will be strong in the first half of next year. After that a reduction in available prime office space, and increasing rents, may lead to occupiers pre-letting, or undertaking short-term refurbishment and re-stacking, to await the next ‘wave’ of office buildings due to arrive in 2013.
So it looks like a Merry Christmas for all
Our best wishes for a prosperous 2011
The CityOffices team.
- (24-12-2010)
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As cranes disappear from office development sites in central London the question is what are the triggers needed to start the next cycle of development. This comes down to supply and demand.
In the first half of 2010 take-up in central London was a healthy 5.7m sq ft, slightly up on the 5.6m sq ft of deals done in the second half of 2009 and comfortably ahead of the 3.2m sq ft of deals recorded in the first half of 2009.
The financial services sector has the most active with nearly 2m sq ft of office space taken up, followed by 690,000 sq ft taken by professional services firms and 330,000 sq ft by insurance companies.
In terms of area the City of London accounted for nearly 2.6m sq ft of the office space taken up, with Midtown take-up being 1m sq ft, and the take up in Docklands 700,000 sq ft. The West End managed a relatively slender 1.3m sq ft of space taken.
New requirements for office space in central London during the first half of 2010, amounted to around 4.1m sq ft, just ahead of levels in 2009.
So far in the second half of 2010 office deals continue apace as firms take advantage of rent deals. However, for the few remaining ‘iconic’ office buildings In the City of London and West End rents now seem to be be on an upward path.
The amount of available Grade A (newly completed or refurbished) office space in central London peaked in autumn 2009, with 12m sq ft being available in the City and 8m sq ft in the West End. Since then the take up of office space has reduced by 17%, with the amount of space available being 9.5m sq ft in the City and 7.5m in the West End. In total this is gives an availability to stock ratio of just over 7%, a fairly healthy level, when a ‘normal’ market is seen as being a ratio of 5%.
A reducing amount of office space, prospects of rising rents, and demand holding up, are the key signals for office construction starting again. Developers are already busy dusting off plans and clearing sites in anticipation of starts in 2011. The only thing holding things back may be development finance.
Andy King
Subscribe now - (10-09-2010)
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Great Portland Estates has said that it is putting new developments on hold until the end of 2010 at the earliest and maybe later. Toby Courtauld, chief executive, sees “a significant downturn and the demand side has deteriorated quite strongly”; He has commented that there has been a 66% fall in active demand in the West End of London over the past six months, and this is seen as continuing. The company priorities are now capital conservation, maximizing occupancy levels and crystallizing reversions. Hammerson and Liberty International have also delayed development activity and put major developments on hold in 2009. - (15-11-2008)
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ING Real Estate has completed its 1,548 sq m (16,667 sq ft) office refurbishment of the seven-storey office and retail building at 2-4 Eastcheap, London, EC3. Tuffin Ferraby Taylor advised. Cuffe was main contractor and the letting agent is King Sturge. - (15-02-2008)
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Shell-Mex House in the Strand has been sold for just under £500m to Westbrook, the US fund manager. The 51,096 sq m (550,000 sq ft) art deco building was owned by a group of private investors, including Robert and Vincent Tchenguiz, David and Simon Reuben and Jack Dellal, who acquired the building in 2002 for £327m from Lehman Brothers. The building has been on the market since early 2006 and has seen several bids fall through, possibly because of rising interest rates. Westbrook was advised by Knight Frank and CB Richard Ellis advised the consortium. - (06-07-2007)
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An interim report from the Department of Culture could lead to changes in the protected view lines for the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster. London's Unesco World Heritage Sites are seen as being in need of more stringent planning rules to protect them. Any move to extend view lines could be at odds with the Mayor of Londons support for tall buildings. The Government is undertaking a visual impact study to review the current London View Management Framework. Any changes to London view lines is certain to lead to a lively debate. - (15-02-2007)
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The top of the property investment market has been called by agent DTZ. Joe Valente, group head of research, has commented that the peak of the commercial market had probably been reached and that the level of interest in buildings on the market has been seen to be falling recently. This accords with the general view of property cycles that prices go up and then usually go down. - (06-07-2006)
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The Mercer Company is having most of Basildon House on Moorgate, London EC2, refurbished. The building will be available from early June 2005 and is being marketed by DTZ and Ingleby Trice. The building is still partially occupied but the areas currently being renovated cover approximately 2,322 sq m (25,000 sq ft). The entire lower ground, 1st, 2nd, & 3rd floors are being refurbished along with part of the 5th and ground floors. - (24-03-2005)
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Work has now gotten underway on the redevelopment of 71 Lombard Street, London EC3. The building is being renovated by IVG Asticus, which is acting as construction manager and appointed sub contractors for the building work, and should be ready to occupy during early 2007. When completed, the building will provide approximately 12,000 sq m (129,168 sq ft) of offices on floors 1-8 and 3,716 sq m (40,000 sq ft) of retail on the ground and mezzanine floors as well in the basement. The letting agents for the offices are DTZ and Savills and DTZ and Cushman are the agents for the retail. - (08-03-2005)
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British Land has revealed the plans for a 48-storey glass tower at the site of 122 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3. The Richard Rogers Partnership is the architect of the Leadenhall Building which at 224m (737 ft) tall would be the highest in the City of London. The design incorporates a distinctive triangular shape and will provide 53,605 sq m (577,000 sq ft) of offices, with the lower floors of the building providing restaurants and bars along with 1,672 sq m (18,000 sq ft) of retail space. British Land is hopeful that the Leadenhall Building will be completed in 2006, with a late 2004 start following approval of the planning application made this week. English Heritage is thought to be more positive about this skyscraper as it does not block views of St Pauls. - (15-02-2004)
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Benchmark Group has sold its interest in three office properties in the City of London for about £8.6m. Benchmark ha sold the leasehold interests inMitre House, Cheapside, and Compter House, Wood Street, London EC2, to clients of ING Real Estate. Benchmark has said that the disposals will allow the compnay to focus on the West End market. - (24-08-2003)
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Richard Seifert, the architect who designed Centre Point and the NatWest Tower, now known as Tower 42, has died aged 90. Centre Point, constructed on a small plot, is still believed to be the world's tallest prefabricated building. A controversial development in design terms Centre Point also came to be regarded as the worse example of development greed as the building remained empty for years while rental values increased. The NatWest building in its plan shape is remarkably similar to the National Westminster logo, although any deliberate intention in 'mirroring' the design was always denied. After the second world war Siefert became one of the UK's most prolific architects and the two buildings formed just a small part of his extensive portfolio. - (27-10-2001)
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TrizecHahn, the Toronto-based property investment company, and Rugby Estates, backed by UBS, the Swiss Bank, and Hilstone, the developer, are said to be shortlisted to compete to buy Taylor Woodrow's St Katherine's Dock development in London E1. The bidding for the 1970's development is said to be close to the asking price of £250m. The development comprises mainly residential units but includes a site with planning permission for a 16,722 sq m (180,000 sq ft) office scheme known as K2. Other losing bidders are said to include Marylebone Warwick Balfour, the property company, with JE Robert and Greycoat; Catalyst Capital with Blackstone, and Lehman Brothers, the US funds; and CIT. - (15-10-2001)
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At the 'Docklands at 20' conference Judith Mayhew, chair of policy and resources at the Corporation of London, has said that "excessive layers" are undermining the planning process and putting London position as a leading financial centre at risk. She made the point said that planning rules allowed English Heritage and others to delay approvals. Her view is that "Large developments, in the City and elsewhere, need speed and certainty in planning process" and she also seemed to be saying that the power of the Mayor of London and the Secretary of State to over-ride local authority decisions, along with individuals and organisation that "seek to influence" decisions, were unnecessary layers.
- (03-10-2001)
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A review of the private finance initiative (PFI) approach on the Treasury and Ministry of Defence buildings in Whitehall, London SW1 has been launched by the National Audit Office, parliament's spending watchdog. The NAO has said that I will produce separate reports on the Treasury and MoD contracts, which are worth about £500m and £1.6bn respectively. The Treasury's Grade II listed building is being refurbished by the Exchequer Partnership, a consortium involving Chesterton, Stanhope and Bovis Lend Lease. The MoD's Grade I listed main building in Whitehall is being refurbished by Modus Services, a consortium comprising Amey, McQuarie Infrastructure, John Laing and Innisfree. Internal demolition work on the MoD's building will start in September. - (25-08-2001)
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Grosvenor, the private property company, is said to be in advanced negotiations to buy 41 Lothbury, London EC2 from the Royal Bank of Scotland. The scheme has planning approval for the refurbishment and partial redevelopment of the 9-storey, Grade II listed, building, the former National Westminster headquarters. The scheme involves a change of use from a banking hall to office (B1) use, with retail and restaurant space. The net office floorspace proposed is estimated to be about 13,935 sq m (150,000 sq ft). DTZ Debenham Tie Leung is thought to be advising RBS and CB Hillier Parker is acting for Grosvenor. - (29-07-2001)
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British Telecom is said to be close to arranging a sale and leaseback deal on its £2bn property portfolio with Land Securities. Land Securities is rumoured to have beaten Mapeley to the deal. In what is thought to be a speeding up of the process BT may now complete its £2bn portfolio sale and leaseback deal by summer 2001. BT's advisor Schroder Salomon Smith Barney is understood to have recently shortlisted Land Securities Trillium and Mapeley, the George Soros backed venture, as the final two bidders for the 7,500 sites in the UK. Oftel, the telephone regulator, has set restrictions on BT's ability to sell sites and they are to be leased to the successful bidders for 130-years and then leased back by BT on 30-year agreements. The leases are understood to have break options for BT to vacate premises after 15-years, providing redevelopment opportunities for central London sites such as Mondial House, Upper Thames Street and Fleet Building, Farringdon Street, both in EC4 - (09-04-2001)
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Plans by Railtrack to redevelop the major rail interchanges in central London continues apace. A £250m mixed-use redevelopment scheme for Victoria Station, London SW1, first mooted in the mid-1990's, is being revived. Railtrack is said to be working on a revised masterplan for the Victoria site, which could see an office and retail development of about 46,451 sq m (500,000 sq ft) built at the station. The latest scheme seems likely to integrate a new bus terminal within the scheme with offices above. In addition to the Victoria proposals Railtrack is currently working on plans for 'office-led' mixed-use schemes at Paddington, London Bridge, Kings Cross and with Pillar at Cricklewood, north London. There have also been rumours of investigations by Railtrack on the potential of redeveloping at Waterloo. At Victoria, Railtrack is said to be about to undertake a study, along with other developers with schemes in the area, to assess the level of demand. The developers could include Land Securities, Grosvenor Estate, and Howard Ronson International. The total future potential of developments in the Victoria area amount to over 1.5m sq ft of office space. An end-user 'demand' survey would be no doubt be helpful as at present everyone seems to be chasing Enron, the US energy company, which has the largest known West End requirement. - (26-03-2001)
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Ernst & Young, the accountancy firm, has confirmed that it is to take about 35,767 sq m (385,000 sq ft) at CIT's More London Bridge development in London SE1. Ernst & Young is said to be taking Building 1A, with an option to take a further 10,684 sq m (115,000 sq ft) in the linked Building 1B. The firm's relocation in early 2003 could release up to 12 buildings onto the market, including Rolls House, 7 Rolls Buildings, London EC4 and Becket House and York House, London SE1. DTZ Debenham Tie Leung is advising Ernst & Young. - (25-03-2001)
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The Financial Times, owned by Pearson, has a requirement for additional office space and is said to ahve pre-let The Riverside Building, opposite the FT's headquarters, at Southwark Bridge, London SE1. The building recently started construction and should be completed to shell & core early next year, with occupation by summer 2002. It is said Stephen Hill, the FT Group chief executive, is keen to build an "FT Campus" in Southwark. - (28-01-2001)
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