Increase in Demand for Unused Office Space

According to a recent report, office space is getting costlier by the day with the spur in growth of international business.

After the economic downturn caused many companies to close down, scores of unused spaces were left hopelessly unoccupied. But recently changes in business trends have ignited new hope.

Gary Cranford, Business Manager for Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce, was optimistic about filling the unused office spaces in Bracknell. 

He said: “On Wednesday it was announced that employment has risen across the country and this recruitment will ultimately result in companies needing to move to larger premises.”

In addition to this, a new inward investment web portal www.thamesvalley.co.uk has been launched due to the efforts being made to attract investors from the US and China.

Bracknell seems to be an exciting potential investment zone for hi-tech companies from these countries because of its location. Currently there is more than 1.3 million square feet of unused office space, comprising 764,677 sq. ft. of top-class grade A, 410,313 sq. ft. of grade B and 210,058 sq. ft. of grade C.

A report by Reading-based property experts Lambert Smith Hampton claimed the take up of unused property in the borough has decreased from 140,500 sq. ft. during 2010 to 95,300 sq. ft. during 2011, about 32 per cent. 

However their head of office, Nick Coote, believes that despite these figures, Bracknell will prove to be an attractive investment location as it offers the best value for money in the Thames Valley region, and demand has already increased “significantly” so far in 2012.

The report also stated that due to an oversupply no new offices have been built this year, however many existing or unused offices are expected to be refurbished or have their use changed.  

Current rents of around £20 per sq. ft. are estimated to rise 20% by next year following the expected economic growth, although on the flip side unused offices could prove a ‘major drag’ on these figures. This in turn could however work in Bracknell’s favour, as lower rents would be more attractive to larger businesses.