A flurry of major City of London office requirements totalling over 1 million square feet have been launched to market, lifting expectations for a continued bounceback in activity as 2024 gets underway.
Japanese investment bank Nomura, advised by Newmark, has launched a search for between 250,000 square feet and 300,000 square feet of offices. It occupies around 470,800 square feet of offices at Union Investment's 1 Angel Lane, Watermark Place.
US insurance broker Gallagher, also advised by Newmark, is looking for around 250,000 square feet. It is based in around 110,000 square feet at Cathay Life Insurance's The Walbrook Building and around 55,000 square feet at 67 Lombard Street in the City.
Global professional services company Accenture has appointed CBRE to look for options for a 250,000-square-foot to 300,000-square-foot headquarters building. It is based in around 185,000 square feet at Brookfield's 30 Fenchurch Street.
Visa, advised by CBRE, is now actively in the market looking for between 150,000 square feet and 200,000 square feet in a London-wide search ahead of a lease event in 2028. The finance and insurance company is based in its innovation centre in Paddington at 1 Sheldon Square, occupying around 195,000 square feet.
And law firm Weil Gotschal & Manges, also advised by CBRE, is looking at options for a circa 150,000-square-foot move. It is based at City Court House, Rolls Building at 110 Fetter Lane in the City.
Vodafone, advised by JLL, has begun a review of options across central London for circa 140,000 square feet. Its global headquarters are at CC Land's 1 Kingdom Street in Paddington, where it occupies around 95,000 square feet.
Speaking at JLL's look-ahead presentation in London this week, Hannah Dwyer, head of EMEA work dynamics research and strategy, said there was a clear lift in major office requirements in central London for the most prime space in the final quarter of 2023. JLL also sees the possibility of prime UK rents growing by as much as 10% this year.
Mark Stansfield, CoStar's head of UK analytics, said: “These new requirements suggest that the wave of positivity seen in the City’s leasing market in the second half of 2023 will roll over into 2024. Several bumper lettings pushed City office take-up above 6.5 million square feet for the first time in four years in 2023, while demand as measured by net absorption, or the change in occupied stock, turned positive even as it ebbed across London as a whole.
"The City’s office vacancy rate has stabilised at just over 10% as a result, while the availability rate – which includes space under construction – has fallen consistently over the past 18 months as firms battle to secure a dwindling pool of high-quality, highly sustainable office space. At just over 11 million square feet, City office availability is at its lowest level since mid-2020, and could fall further as these requirements are realised.”