Most expensive place to rent office space? London’s West End

London’s West End, renowned for being a premier business district, has overtaken Hong Kong to regain its place as the most expensive place to rent office space in the world.

The capital is renowned for being a hotpot of inflated prices, with the cost of beer, fish and chips, and accommodation being the most commonly bemoaned. But DTZ’s annual Global Occupancy Costs survey has revealed we might have to add office space to the list of hotly-priced commodities, as the West End leapfrogs Hong Kong to become the most expensive region in the world for businesses renting workspace.

Occupiers in the West End were billed an average of  £14,900 (US$23,500) per workstation per year at the end of 2012, which is more than three times the global average. But the price tag has failed to deter some of the world’s largest corporates, with Facebook recently acquiring 30,000 sq ft offices in Covent Garden last year.

“These figures are a tangible reflection of the fact that London is a highly attractive place to locate a business,” Richard Howard, head of DTZ West End, said, although he warned that prices in the West End can still vary greatly.

“While boutique specialist financial sector companies are happy to pay a premium to be based in one of the world’s premier business districts, recent transactions involving Google, Expedia, Skype, Facebook and LinkedIn have all been at a considerable discount to Mayfair prices, reflecting the vibrancy of their distinctive locations.”

Hong Kong was replaced by London at the top of the list after occupancy costs fell 12%. Elsewhere, the average global occupancy costs increased by 1% to US$7,495 per workstation in 2012, with the overall cost in the UK increasing by 1.6%.

Reduce your overheads

For many, renting space in the West End is not necessary or realistic. If you don’t need your offices to be slap bang in the centre of town, you could reduce your overheads substantially. Why not take a look at one of our sites in London? We have centres in:

• Brixton
• Camberwell – Lilford and Lomond
• Perivale (Ealing)
• New Addington
• Wimbledon