Jones Lang LaSalle says that confidence is returning to the regional commercial property market and that it is “stronger now than at any point since the financial crisis.”
Tim Luckman, of the North West valuation advisory team, made the comment at the firm’s spring briefing. He stated that the market has passed its lowest point and was now improving.
Luckman said, “While the recovery is by no-means at full speed yet, the overall sentiment in the marketplace is more positive now than it has been for several years.
“The news I hear on a daily basis from the region’s property companies, private investors and developers is generally positive – occupier activity has improved, take-up is on the rise across all sectors and incentives are coming down.
“Investment sales for prime and good secondary assets are now typically subject to multiple bids, with premiums on some portfolio sales. Owner occupiers are returning, and my own team has valued more land in the last six months than at any time in the past five years; developers are finally dusting off their plans.”
However the firm’s European head, Andrew Burrell, pointed out that although it appears the market has bottomed out, conditions remain challenging and economic growth in the United Kingdom remains very sluggish. He went on to say that recovery is dependent on “wider events in the fragile global economy.”
The improvements in the market must be considered in light of the last few years, which have seen some of the most difficult conditions in a generation, according to Burrell.
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