More evidence of resurgent Manchester office market
OFFICE take-up in Manchester City Centre is approaching a three-year high according to commercial property agent Lambert Smith Hampton.
Data from its third quarter Manchester Office Pulse report shows city centre take-up hit 198,766 sq ft, up 77% on the previous quarter.
The increase takes the total for the first three quarters to 655,108 sq ft. The figure tallies with those presented by Jones Lang Lasalle last week. It said take-up so far this year was up 36% from 490,000 sq ft in the first three quarters of 2012 to 667,000 sq ft this year.
Levels are expected to reach 850,000 sq ft by the end of the year, well above the 2012 figure of 758,000 sq ft and the highest since 2010.
Out-of-town take-up was 179,583 sq ft, up 25% on the previous quarter but demand fell in Trafford Park and Salford Quays.
Mark Bamber, associate director of Office Agency at LSH Manchester, said: “The mood in the marketplace is certainly more positive, and the figures clearly indicate an upward trajectory. While we may not have returned to pre-recession levels, consistent recovery is much more sustainable than the boom of 2007.
“We expect to see increased activity in the final quarter of this year, with a number of active requirements from large corporates in the market, which for the last few years have been absent. There is no reason why this growth trend should not continue well into 2014 and beyond.”
Meanwhile, research by Colliers International has found that a concerted effort to develop homegrown media and technology firms in Manchester and attract inward investment has left the city well-placed to outperform the wider UK office market.
Colliers’ latest Manchester Office Market Snapshot highlights the emergence of key hubs such as The Sharp Project, and the prospect of Tomorrow, a hi-tech project by a consortium of global companies that has taken 180,000 sq ft over around 20 locations.
It said Allied London’s plan for a 160,000 sq ft office building aimed at technology, media and telecoms businesses in Spinningfields was further evidence of the city’s commitment to growth sectors.
