Q1 2016 has seen a strong start for both Birmingham and Manchester office markets, with a healthy level of activity, according to data from Colliers International.
Since 2015 saw Birmingham city experience record annual take-up of 970,458 sq ft, this year it has achieved the busiest ever first quarter, with take up reaching 283,697 sq ft, above the 10-year quarterly average of 171,839 sq ft.
There were a total of 36 deals in Q1 2016, with Grade A office take-up accounting for 55% of the deals.
Head of Colliers’ Birmingham office team, Douglas Bonham, commented: “While we anticipate continued healthy demand from existing regional occupiers, inward investment will increasingly play a significant part in the West Midlands office market over the coming years.”
Meanwhile, in Manchester, activity in Q1 was fairly slow, with take-up being 196,533 sq ft, however Colliers said the demand for office space in central Manchester still remained healthy, thanks to local and national demand. The biggest contributor to the total take-up was the business services sector.
Colliers has said that by mid-2016, Grade A office take-up in the Manchester market is likely to experience a complete absence of ready-to-occupy supply, which will persist until Q3 next at the least.
However, this shortage will most likely settle in the coming years, with 967,832 sq ft of Grade A space to be delivered between the end of this year and 2018.
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