Oxford: Savills predicts office rents will hit £30 per sq ft in 2017
Rents for Grade-A offices in Oxford, which are currently at £26 per sq ft, will reach £30 per sq ft in 2017, says Savills. This is because space on offer "continues to diminish and the speculative development pipeline is yet to be deployed".
Savills noted that Oxford’s office market continued to feel the squeeze in 2016 as Grade-A supply remained constrained in the face of strong demand, in particular from financial services and science-related companies. The city centre was the most affected, despite the fact that refurbishments provided some relief.
Charles Rowton-Lee, head of commercial agency at Savills Oxford, said: “The Oxford office market has undergone a shift in recent years with stock largely being provided in business parks, with little new development taking place in the city centre. As a result, we have seen rental growth over the year as levels of Grade-A space become increasingly constrained.”
Take up levels in Oxford have remained in line with the last two years with the total for 2016 set to reach 264,000 sq ft. Banbury experienced particularly high levels of activity, accounting for approximately 27% of total take-up levels with activity focussed predominantly on the area’s business park.
Credit: CoStar
