In Barcelona's 22@ district, more than thirty new buildings destined for the office market are under construction. It is estimated that these new developments, driven by large international funds and local developers, will add around 365,000 additional square meters to the tertiary rental stock throughout 2022 and 2023. In a world characterized by uncertainty and the debate about the role physical spaces will play in the future of business organizations, the absorption of square meters recorded in 2021 injects optimism into the sector, which applauds the reactivation of the market and corporations' commitment to making decisions again.
According to the consultancy Cushman & Wakefield, the total demand for offices in Barcelona in 2021 was 86% higher than that recorded in 2020, with a total of 332,000 square meters contracted. 40% of this demand corresponds to buildings already constructed or under development in 22@, thus consolidating the technological district of the Catalan capital one more year as the preferred area for companies when locating their corporate headquarters.
The 22@ is also the area that concentrates most of the property sales destined for offices, a market that reached a record figure of 1.650 billion euros in Barcelona last year, 250% higher than in 2020. Among the properties that changed hands in the district are Amazon's new offices, the Parc Central complex, the offices of the Glòries shopping center, Diagonal 123, or the Sea Towers project.
The increase in office rentals recorded in Barcelona in the last year has been much higher than that recorded in Madrid, a city that has seen a 20% rise, with 362,000 square meters.
Cushman & Wakefield highlights that in the fourth quarter of 2021, office contracting in Barcelona reached 99,000 square meters, 40% more than the quarterly average of the last 4 quarters and 38% higher than the last quarter of 2019, before the pandemic.
The 332,000 square meters commercialized in 2021 are distributed among 264 contracts, 38% more than in 2020. 60% of the demand corresponded to buildings rated A and B+, so, according to the consultancy, "the quality of the buildings remains key" when choosing.
"Despite the continued instability, companies have resumed the path of decision-making and the market has reactivated. We expect more activity in 2022," assures Javier Bernades, head of the office area at Cushman & Wakefield Spain.
Javier Bernades: "Despite the continued instability, companies have resumed the path of decision-making and the market has reactivated"It must be taken into account that 15% of the contracted area, about 50,000 square meters, corresponds to two large pre-lease operations led by Glovo and Webhelp, with 30,000 square meters and 20,000 square meters, respectively.
After an 86% increase in the volume of office rental contracting, the global availability rate in Barcelona (percentage of vacant office space or space looking for a tenant) stands at around 7.5% at the close of 2021. "The controlled increase of this variable is mainly due to the delivery of new and rehabilitated space available, in addition to second-hand supply returning to the market," explains Cushman & Wakefield. The availability rate in Madrid is higher, at 10.5%.