City centre sees bumper Q3 for office take up, driven by two big deals
Manchester city centre enjoyed a bumper Q3 in terms of office take-up which boosted the 2024 take up figures.
In Q3, 432,619 sq ft of office space was let across 51 transactions. In totality 943,619 sq ft has been let thus far in 2024, the outturn in Q3 accounted for 46% of take up recorded in 2024.
The two largest transactions completed so far in 2024, were concluded in Q3, the letting of 4 Angel Square (196,443 sq ft) to BNY Mellon and the letting of three floors in 1 St Michaels (68,860 sq ft) to ARM.
Alone, these transactions amounted to 265,303 sq ft, 28% of the total outturn for 2024.
The Manchester Office Agents Forum (MOAF) is predicting a strong take-up for the rest of 2024, with outturn expected to top 1.3 million sq ft.
An outturn of this level will eclipse the five- and 10-year average figures of 1,106,206 sq ft and 1,240,805 sq ft, respectively.
Other notable transactions concluded in Q3, including Teleperformance acquiring 23,065 sq ft at Bruntwood Sci Tech latest redevelopment, Bond.
Rob Yates, Head of Office Agency at Cushman & Wakefield and MOAF Chairman, said: “Manchester’s office market continued to perform robustly, the return of larger lettings is particularly pleasing.
“The letting of 4 Angel Square is the largest regional ‘big six’ transaction recorded in the last four years. This illustrates the pull of Manchester to major occupiers seeking to consolidate and expand their footprint in Manchester.”
He added: “We continue to see a diminishing supply of readily available Grade A space and robust demand for the best space.
“Given the lack of speculative development we expect to see a supply and demand imbalance in 2025. This issue will be further magnified when a number of high-profile transactions completed in Q4.”
Outside the city centre, Salford Quays and Old Trafford saw 15 completed transactions, totalling 35,134 sq ft. Meanwhile, South Manchester saw 59 transactions, totalling 81,910 sq ft.
John Nash, of Canning O’Neill, said “The out of town markets have been incredibly consistent through 2024 with similar transaction numbers and take up throughout each quarter of the year.
“Take up remains down on historic five year averages for these markets with larger lettings proving more difficult to secure. However, with reduced void and increasing rental levels in the city centre, the argument to look out of town is likely to become even more compelling.”
MOAF comprises Avison Young, BE Group, CBRE, Colliers International, Canning O’Neill, Cushman & Wakefield, Edwards, Fisher German, Hallam Property Consultants, JLL, Knight Frank, LSH, OBI, Savills and Sixteen.
