Q2 2022 Central London office market report
After a robust first quarter of take-up across Central London, leasing momentum continued into Q2
- Julian Sandbach
- Rob Corbett
- Chris Valentine
- Jeremy Attfield
- Elaine Rossall
- Hayley Armstrong
The leasing market remained buoyant in Q2 2022, with 2.6 million sq ft let across Central London. As a result, the year-to-date volumes (5.1 million sq ft) were 71% above the same period in 2021.
Pre-leasing activity continued apace with a further 1.2 million sq ft of pre-lets signed during the quarter which accounted for 45% of Q2 activity. As a result of the strong leasing volumes, total space under offer fell quarter-on-quarter to reach 2.9 million sq ft at the end of June.
The overall vacancy rate remained stable at 7.8%, whilst the new vacancy rate increased marginally to 1.4%. Speculative development increased for the second consecutive quarter, as a further 1.4 million started on site.
Investment volumes across Central London slowed from the record high seen in Q1 but year-to-date office turnover was more than double the volumes seen in the first half of 2021.