London’s prime offices and top neighborhoods are still in demand, with Mayfair still hugely popular despite the wider market’s slowdown, according to Knight Frank’s head of London offices.
“We anticipate the £200 per square foot marker to be broken this cycle,” Philip Hobley said on Bloomberg Television on Thursday, citing continuing demand from money managers in the West End. “There have been very significant deals like Blackstone committing to quarter of a million square feet on the south side of Berkeley Square.”
While the office rental market remains tight in certain areas and demand among tenants continues to remain strong for offices with the best amenities, the wider market is in limbo, according to Hobley. Investors continue to stand on the sidelines as they wait for prices to drop after the sharp rise in interest rates and tech firms — typically among the biggest tenants — are notably absent in the market, he said.
Read more: London Developers Kick Off Record Green Office Refurbishments
--With assistance from Jack Sidders.
