Office use is in a state of flux. How you use it, when you use it and what you need out of it have changed massively over the past 18 months.
It looks like the office sector will be making big changes in 2024 to meet the needs of modern teams. We’ve spoken to insiders and analysed industry news to find out what office providers and landlords are prioritising, and more importantly, what that means for you!
Pricing war amongst flexible office providers
What's changing? Industry insiders tell us that because a large amount of conventional office space is being converted into flexible space, there will be a surge of supply in 2024. This will drive prices down elsewhere and increase competition for customers. When considering that startups are key clients for flexible space, and fewer of them are receiving significant funding, there will be less cash in the market to spend. This will likely lead to increased incentives for brokers from providers.
What it means for you? We expect to see new providers offering discounts in return for longer contract lengths and more room to negotiate on additional services like meeting room credits.
Committing to sustainability
What’s changing? Both Carter Jonas and JLL are predicting “a much greater focus on buildings that are sustainable and energy-efficient, as occupiers try to meet increasingly ambitious ESG aspirations,” and “landlords eyeing up investments in smart technology to control and track consumption, installing wind and solar power, and setting decarbonization targets."
What it means for you? If your business has sustainability goals, you can expect office providers to better support you in meeting them and reporting on them more accurately.
Our take on it: Improved reporting will help businesses understand their impact, but it’s only as good as the action it drives. Heating, lighting and fitting out an office for it to sit half-empty every day is like switching the air-con off in the back of a car, whilst still running the engine. We would like to see desk utilisation and emissions per occupier being part of the sustainability conversation
Innovative leasing options
What’s changing? JLL expects to see “more flexible leases that cater for dynamic workforces, and the availability of the spaces that meet their priorities.”
What it means for you? An increase in innovative leasing options like office sharing, where two businesses occupy one space on different days, making premium spaces more affordable.
Flight to quality
What’s changing? Deloitte reports that “Newer, high-quality assets continue to significantly outperform the rest as the flight to quality accelerates…..and the value gap between better-quality and lower-quality assets has clearly widened”
What it means for you? Low-quality spaces in poor locations are out. Providers realise that companies only want offices that are actually worth leaving home for. We expect to see refurbishments of low-quality spaces and an increase in new high-quality providers in prime locations popping up.
If the trend towards more flexibility resonates with you, find out more about our part-time offices. And if you have an office, but aren’t using it all the time, or have empty spaces within it, find out how we can turn that waste into revenue.
