West End most expensive offices in the world in 2014

DTZ’s latest research shows that the West End is yet again at the top of the list when it comes to the most expensive office space property. 

Second on the list is Hong Kong, and yet this is almost a third cheaper than the West End’s average prices, which amount to £18,675 per workstation according to DTZ. This equates to 11 times more expensive than Lisbon, the cheapest European city. The rate of price increases is also significant, with London continuing to see fast increases in costs, at 11% in 2014, just behind Dublin at 13%. 

Globally, increases in the cost of office space were also seen in the Middle East, specifically Jeddah and Riyadh, as well as in Africa. The Middle East saw the fastest increase in costs globally in Abu Dhabi, while Lagos in Nigeria saw occupancy costs increase by 8%. Smaller increases were seen in North America and Asia, at 2% and 1.5%. 

While the above increases have been noted continent-wide, in terms of specific cities, there are different patterns emerging. Toronto, for example, decreased by 30% with Ottawa and Montreal both at an 11% decrease. The US cities of New York and Atlanta both saw falls of 13% and 11% last year and in Australia all the city markets’ office space costs fell between 12% and 14%. 

Other declines include Moscow, which experienced a fall in occupancy costs by as much as a third, followed by Bucharest, Bratislava, Kiev and Warsaw. 

The figures amount to an overall global fall of 4.4% in 2014, the research showed. 

This news was brought to you by Morgan Pryce, a specialist tenant acquisition agent with offices in Oxford Circus and the City. Morgan Pryce specialises in search, negotiation and project management and works exclusively for tenants.