Manchester is becoming an increasingly popular destination for businesses, with the number of office developments beginning to climb within the Greater Manchester area providing affordable space for firms of all sizes to expand. This has seen office demand growing steadily, with property experts predicting that total annual take up will top 1 million sq ft by the end of the year.
In the nine months to the end of September, office take up reached 968,338 sq ft, meaning that the pace of growth has already outstripped the total set in 2013 by 11 per cent. Should the pace of take up maintain its current pace, Manchester will see its strongest result in the office market since 2010.
However, the third quarter did see a slight drop in demand, with take up in the three months to the end of September falling to 171,824 sq ft. This was 31,500 sq ft less than the third quarter of 2013, and a significant drop from the 482,640 sq ft leased during the second quarter of this year.
Lambert Smith Hampton associate director Adam Jackson is not concerned that the third quarter dip necessarily points towards a cooling in demand.
He says; “Occupier confidence continues to strengthen and the leasing advisors of the North West are noting that more businesses are expanding.
“With the recruitment of additional staff comes the need for extra office space.
“Despite quarterly fluctuations, the occupational office markets across Greater Manchester are set to exceed long term annual averages this year as witnessed already in the city centre.”
One of the Greater Manchester areas which has proven particularly popular with expanding firms in the media and creative industries is Salford Quays (pictured), which has so far this year seen 102,800 sq ft of space let.
Although the third quarter saw take up slide by around 20,000 sq ft in the area, it remains well on track to beat its annual average of 115,000 sq ft of new lets.
South Manchester has also enjoyed a return to strength this year, with the third quarter noting a 4.5 per cent lift in take up to 176,736 sq ft. The most notable deal in this area during the period was Contour Housing’s acquisition of the 23,582 sq ft Renaissance Court.
At the other end of the scale lie the Warrington town centre and Birchwood markets, as only 83,553 sq ft was let during the third quarter in these areas combined – a 42 per cent drop since the same period last year. However, this can be partially explained by the lower supply in this area when compared to 2013.
With Manchester set to break the 1 million sq ft barrier by the end of the year, it seems that the government’s hopes for the formation of a “northern powerhouse” may be realistic after all.
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