Office space demand 'set to rise in Birmingham'

Savills has predicted rental growth for the Birmingham office space market in 2011

Article posted: 18 Jan 2011

The next 12 months will see demand for office space in Birmingham and other key markets grow in response to a lack of new development, according to Savills.

Research from the property adviser indicates that rental growth will move into positive territory on a national level during 2011, with headline rents for office space in the City of London increasing by 14 per cent.

Nick Williams, office agency director at Savills Birmingham, said the second city is also expected to post significant rental growth this year.

"Like many UK cities, a restricted development pipeline in Birmingham will be the main catalyst," he explained.

Mr Williams claimed office space locations where private sector employers dominate will see higher levels of upward rental movement, as public sector austerity measures are still "causing some uncertainty in the medium term".

According to data from Savills, the office vacancy rate in the UK has dropped to 13.3 per cent from its peak of 15.8 per cent in 2009.

Last week, the developers behind Birmingham's mixed-use regeneration scheme Arena Central received permission to increase the office space on the site from 500,000 sq ft to 800,000 sq ft.

Posted by Daniel