Singapore Has 2nd Highest Share Of Flex Space In Grade A Offices

ASIA PACIFIC – In the Grade A office market, Singapore has the second largest proportion of coworking space in Asia, according to a report published by CBRE on Tuesday (20 December, SGT).

Out of the city-state’s overall Grade A office stock, 4.6 percent are occupied by flexible office space, according to data from the real estate consultancy.

Meanwhile, Bengaluru topped the ranking with 5.4 percent of its Grade A office supply taken up by coworking space operators, whereas that in India’s capital territory Delhi stood at 4.4 percent.

CBRE revealed that Bengaluru has the highest supply of flex office space located in Grade A office buildings at 10.6 million sq ft.

In Asia Pacific, the overall stock of coworking spaces reached 76 million sq ft as of September 2022. This translated to a 6 percent annual growth and it also exceeded pre-pandemic growth by 15 percent. Aside from that, the total number of coworking outlets in the region hit about 3,000.

Across the region, the top users of flexible office spaces were tech firms (36 percent) and business services companies (28 percent), followed by finance, life sciences, and retail, shared the property consultancy.

“The flex industry matured over the past two years,” commented CBRE Asia Pacific’s Research Head Henry Chin, who is also the Global Head of investor thought leadership.

“As we approach the new year, companies that continue to adopt flex spaces would be better positioned to embrace hybrid working arrangements, support their employees, and remain agile in their real estate strategies. Additionally, with companies being able to compare and opt for a variety of flex options, operators have identified and are expanding into secondary markets,” he added.

CBRE’s data only encompassed 19 major markets in Asia Pacific, including India, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, China, Hong Kong, Australia, and Singapore.