• Swindon & Wiltshire Property
• Monday July 8 2024
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Bristol office rents spiral among rising demand and economic confidence

Bristol office rents are spiralling among rising demand and confidence in the economy, according to a new report.

Headline rents in Bristol now stand at £48 per sq ft – the highest of any of the UK’s big six cities, according to the latest data from the Bristol Office Agents Society.

The city centre saw 29 deals complete in Q2, with total take-up of 126,056 sq ft, bringing the total for the first half of the year to 253,035 sq ft – a 58 per cent increase on the same period last year.

Both the city centre and out-of-town markets saw take-up in line with quarterly averages and ahead of average take-up figures for Q2, according to the report.

The largest deal of Q2 was a 20,365 sq ft letting at One Temple Quay.

Further large deals include Ridge and Partners commitment to grow within Picton’s Tower Wharf, where they are expanding into 13,559 sq ft, and CEG securing three occupiers – Rathbones, Birketts Law and Knights – at the recently completed EQ building.

These lettings, along with deals secured at 10 Victoria Street, Assembly and One Hundred are all indicators that there is a continued trend towards high-quality space in the city centre and occupiers continue to seek grade A space.

Current levels of supply remain low in the city centre with Tristan Capital’s Welcome Building, and APAM’s One Friary being the only new build schemes which are on-site and under construction.

The out-of-town market also performed well in quarter two with 77,330sq ft of take up from 10 deals.

Chris Howell, director at Howell Commercial said: “Office take-up remained steady at just over 200,000 sq.ft. across the conurbation this quarter.

“CEG’s ‘uber prime’ EQ on Victoria Street accounted for 20 per cent of space committed to in the city centre driving prime headline rents close to £50 per square foot.

“Like many sub-markets vacancy rates are rising but the reinvention of grade B stock continues at pace, which is testament to the underlying strength of the City’s professional and technology sectors.”

JLL’s Director of Office Agency, Ian Wills added: “The number of transactions in the second quarter is in excess of pre-covid levels which is really encouraging.

“It is also fantastic to see companies like Ridge & Partners and Great American Insurance growing, the later increasing their office space threefold.”