HEADING FOR A COOLER SUMMER?
The office market has performed well over the past 1-2 months but most of the good news continues to apply more to London than the rest of the country. Indeed, despite their obvious exposure to global financial markets and international risk appetites, both City and West End investment markets are seeing demand stay ahead of supply. There is also interest in a growing range of assets – albeit with the strongest demand still very much for grade A space. The City has survived both a marked increase in stock availability – with £2.5-3.0bn of new offerings last quarter, which some had expected tooverwhelm the market - and an increase in deal failures as some high profile acquisitions have not completed, only for under bidders or new parties to step forward in most cases.