The first three months of 2015 have seen a period of stability for office rents in both Dubai’s prime and secondary markets, following a slowdown in the rate of increases during the last quarter of 2014.
In its Spring 2015 Dubai Commercial Property Outlook report, Cluttons’ states that Grade A office rents increased at a rate of 14 per cent in 2014. Secondary space grew by a much higher rate of more than 24 per cent last year.
This marked growth has largely failed to continue through to this year, as rents have generally stabilised in spite of a steady stream of requirements from business tenants. In the secondary market, rental rates have been influenced by the abundance of available stock in locations such as Business Bay and Jumeirah Lake Towers..
According to Cluttons Middle East Chief Executive Steve Morgan, the range of requirements for office space ranges form 2,000-25,000 sq ft, indicating the diversity of business activity in Dubai.
The real estate, business services, finance & banking sectors have been especially active over the past few months, with both existing and new entrants to the market seeking space.
Cluttons’ experience reflects from the latest Dubai Economic Department Business Confidence Survey, in which 69 per cent of respondents stated they will invest in larger office space over the next 12 months.
The outlook in the business environment remains very positive; more than two-thirds of business owners expect an increase in their level of trading, and 26 per cent expect to increase their staffing over the year.
