Bristol City centre offices take-up is 50 per cent higher than this time last year according to sector experts Colliers International.
The Broad Quay- based company’s Q2 report reveals that several headline deals drove the recovery with Imperial Tobacco, Ovo Energy and Santander taking space in the city’s commercial centre.
City Centre Q2 take-up was similar to Q1 at just under 144,000 sq ft, but up 50 per on the same quarter of 2012.
“Our forecasts that 2013 would prove to be the turning point for the city’s office market are being borne out by these encouraging figures.
“Although the majority of leasehold transactions continue to be in the smaller size ranges
the number of requirements in excess of 10,000 sq ft has increased significantly over the second quarter.”
The largest deal in Q2 was the freehold purchase by Imperial Tobacco of their new 85,000 sq ft HQ on Winterstoke Road. The largest leasehold transaction saw Ovo Energy lease 7,950 sq ft, at The Core in St Thomas Street.
The single prime Grade A leasehold deal was Santander taking 6,350 sq ft at One Glass Wharf on Temple Quay.
Grade A rents remained stable at £27-£28 per sq ft, which is good news for the market.
Out of town performance continues to be slow, with 47,000 sq ft transacted in Q2, down 42 per cent on the previous quarter but similar to Q1 2012.
The largest out-of-town letting was Jacobs Engineering taking 6,250 sq ft at Glentworth Court near Parkway.
James Preece said: “Once again, the sub 5,000 sq ft market place continues to be the
most active this year, although we have seen a welcome improvement in the number of 10,000 sq ft plus requirements.”
Quoting rents remain static with Grade A at £19-£22 per sq ft.
James Preece concluded: “Although the overall figures show a far more positive picture than a year ago, it should be noted that two city centre transactions accounted for a third of the take-up with the remaining 67 per cent predominantly made up of a large number of sub 5,000 sq ft deals.
“But the recent increase in the volume of requirements in excess of 10,000 sq ft
should result in a better level of leasehold completions towards the end of this year.”