Increase in demand for city centre office space

Demand for office space in Sheffield city centre remains strong against a backdrop of political uncertainty, according to property consultancy CPP which has seen a 133% increase in office lettings.

From August 2016 to July 2017 the firm secured a total of 116,378 sq ft of sales and lettings within the city centre, which included the letting of 36,000 sq ft of Grade A office supply at flagship building Derwent House.

Rob Darrington, partner at CPP, said: “The healthy supply of good quality office stock in Sheffield has enabled the city to attract companies from outside of the region as well as catering for those existing businesses seeking better, more economical office space.

“Despite the well documented on-going negotiations around Brexit, the take-up of buildings throughout the region in the period in question was strong, with experts within the industry predicting that Yorkshire will outperform London with regards to growth in office jobs in the final quarter ahead.”

According to CPP, the upward trajectory in office disposal will continue throughout the rest of 2017.

Darrington said: “In light of recent developments in the Sheffield City Region – which include the approval of a £300m development at Meadowhall Shopping Centre and the announcement of HS2 coming to Sheffield – office properties in Sheffield will further increase in demand.

“Indeed, 2017 has seen the total take up of office buildings to already be over 320,000 sq ft, exceeding the long term average of 305,000 sq ft.

“The market dynamics suggest that the final quarter of 2017 will see an increase in activity as many postponed property decisions now come to fruition, triggering occupiers to consider their current position. Right now, there is a window of opportunity for occupiers to choose from, but this is limited and will not continue into much into 2018.”

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