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Bristol office market remains static

The office space market in Bristol has stagnated, according to French real estate firm BNP Parabis, who said city centre take up dipped in the first three quarters.

Take up dropped slightly to 300,722 sq ft in Bristol Centre, while the number of deals for smaller properties and spaces took up the majority of the market, with 95% of deals falling in the bracket.

Demand for high-quality properties has also slowed, according to BNP Parabis, as companies downsized or moved into what the firm called “secondhand space”.

Investment activity was visible in Bristol, according to the real estate firm, however the market was weak throughout the first nine months of 2012 when compared with 2011.

Bristol offices received just £88.3m of investment, which is significantly lower when compared with the £247.3m figure that was invested in the same period in 2011.

Head of Agency for BNP Parabis in Bristol, Peter White, commented: “As we anticipated, 2012 has proved to be another tough year for the Bristol office market.

“The 2012 take-up levels for the CC and out of town (OOT) markets are expected to be down on last year’s levels. With no speculative completions over the short-term, availability levels in both markets will continue to fall.”

Availability in the city fell by 4% at the end of the last quarter, while availability for out of town spaces dipped marginally in September in comparison to quarter one down to 1.3 sq ft.

Mr White concluded: “Total 2012 Bristol office investment will inevitably be lower than 2011. The outlook for the 2013 is, however, more positive, with a number of large investment sales due to complete in early 2013.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .