Aussie CBD Office Markets Makes A Comeback

AUSTRALIA – The office markets of central business districts (CBDs) across the country are on the mend after COVID-related measures, like lockdowns and mask mandates, have been completely withdrawn, reported The Property Tribune on Thursday afternoon (5 January, SGT).

As a matter of fact, the latest figures from the Property Council of Australia showed that office occupancy levels across many CBDs are seeing a solid recovery.

For instance, Perth registered the highest occupancy at 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels. This is followed by Adelaide (74 percent), Brisbane (67 percent), Sydney (59 percent), and Melbourne at 57 percent. On the other hand, Canberra was the weakest performing office market in terms of office occupancy at 52 percent.

Meanwhile, there is robust demand for coworking spaces in Australia. Traditionally, the go-to workspace of startups, flex office has become an attractive third option for some employees. Some businesses also utilised coworking spaces to transition back to normal office work, while some office landlords are upgrading their commercial properties to add more coworking space and less traditional office space.

In fact, data from The Instant Group showed that demand for flex office space has increased in the past few months. In Sydney and Melbourne, the take-up of coworking space both rose by 14 percent year-on-year in Q3 2022, while that in Brisbane jumped by 31 percent over the same period.

Also, a joint study by Essensys and Flexible Workspace Australia discovered that 85 percent of polled respondents in Australia want to work in a coworking centre close to their residence, at least as much as their main offices. This was especially the case for workers under 40 years old.

Furthermore, more than 90 percent of the surveyed millennials and Generation Z staff revealed that there is a gap in the technology presently available in their office than what’s required to perform their jobs effectively.