Demand ramps up for Canberra’s best office buildings

Overall vacancy in Canberra is at 12.5 per cent, according to the Property Council of Australia’s latest Office Market Rate Report, with A-grade vacancies falling in the past 12 months, B-grade increasing and vacancies dropping in C- and D-grade stock. Michael Ceacis, Colliers International office leasing director, said A-grade properties were in high demand in the ACT. The current A-grade vacancy rate across the territory was at 8.5 per cent. In the Canberra CBD, A-grade stock was at 2.6 per cent vacancy. “Colliers predicts demand for A-grade tenancies to continue and forecasts that A-grade office vacancies in the ACT CBD will be below 2 per cent by January,” he said. “Overall, we anticipate the A-grade vacancy rate will fall to well below 5 per cent over the next 12 to 18 months.” In the past year, gross face rents for A-grade and B-grade office space in Canberra have increased, while the average incentives that owners are offering to secure tenants have fallen. “Businesses needing office space in the coming few years really need to start considering their options,” MrCeacis said. “Positive sentiment on the back of reducing supply of quality office stock, coupled with continued underlying demand and major infrastructure investment, and with the rolling out of the first stage of the light-rail network this year, will contribute to an ongoing tightening of vacancy rates.”