Leeds office market set to finish 2016 strong, despite Brexit uncertainty

Following uncertainty surrounding the Brexit vote, the Leeds office market is set to see a strong second half of the year, according to research from commercial property company, Bilfinger GVA.

Although the firm’s latest ‘Big Nine’ report reveals a slight slowdown in activity during the second quarter of 2016, in line with rest of the country, the outlook for the Leeds office market remains positive.

Bilfinger GVA claims that slowdown is partly due to the uncertainty that had been created in lead up to the EU Referendum vote on 23 June, just seven days prior to the end of Q2.

In Leeds, however, there are a number of requirements expected to fall into the second half of the year with further transactions on the new build schemes at Central Square and Wellington Place.

Demand for city centre opportunities in Leeds this quarter was highlighted by a number of significant deals, including Addleshaw Goddard increasing its presence at 3 Sovereign Square by 8,000 sq ft, in addition to the 51,000 sq ft already occupied.

The city has also seen increased take-up of out of town space and a trend towards owner-occupiers in this sector.

Matthew Tootell, director of offices at Bilfinger GVA Yorkshire, said: “The second quarter of 2016 has held up reasonably well, all things considered. To date there has been some significant deals completed in Leeds and there remains demand for high quality Grade ‘A’ city centre office accommodation, with deals in the pipeline due to land in the next quarter.

“Out of town uptake has experienced an improvement in activity with Slater & Gordon having completed at 2 City West taking approximately 10,860 sq ft and the NHS committing to 10,826 sqft at WIRA Business Park.

“A notable change has been the evidence of an increasing number of owner occupiers entering the market wishing to purchase their own buildings which have been predominantly driven by personal pension transactions.”