property
Office vacancies are growing – economic crisis is scaring companies
Since the Corona crisis, the home office has become established in Germany. Since then, many offices have been empty. And the vacancy rate is growing, even if some companies are demanding more presence again.
Offices in major German cities are increasingly empty – even though some companies are bringing more of their employees back into the office. In addition to the home office, the economic downturn is making itself felt, according to an analysis by real estate specialist Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL).
The office rental market in 2024 will have recovered slightly in the seven metropolises of Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Stuttgart compared to the previous year. But with take-up of 2.7 million square meters, new lettings remained around 30 percent below the average of the past ten years, writes JLL.
The vacancies in the seven office strongholds continued to grow. The available space available at short notice now totals 6.7 million square meters, which corresponds to a vacancy rate of 6.8 percent (end of 2023: 5.8 percent). Office properties are continually coming onto the market, but are not always rented straight away. Companies’ demand for offices that are “smaller but nicer” remains: many are looking for modern and mostly sustainable spaces, while older and unrenovated spaces are increasingly vacant.
Companies unsettled by the crisis
The economic crisis is also slowing demand for office space. The companies reacted sensitively to the geopolitical and economic situation, said JLL expert Konstantin Kortmann. “At the same time, a general uncertainty is reflected in the fact that large and long-term decisions to move and expand are still being postponed by many companies and large rentals of more than 10,000 m² are usually the responsibility of the public administration.”
Since the Corona pandemic, the home office has become established in Germany, although some companies such as Deutsche Bank or SAP are again demanding more presence from their employees. Many companies are downsizing their space. The trend towards home offices is likely to reduce the need for office space in the seven German cities by over a tenth by 2030, the Ifo Institute and real estate consultant Colliers estimated in an earlier study.
dpa
Source: Stern
