European Office Rents Turn South As Occupiers Defer Decisions

LONDON-Average prime office rents in the main European business locations fell back by 0.4% during the third quarter of 2001, indicating that market confidence was fragile even before 11 September, according to a new survey by CB Hillier Parker. This is the first time that rents have fallen since 1996, and follows on from a sharp decline in the rental growth rate during the second quarter of the year.

Rents in most centres are now static, but falls have been registered in a number of key locations including Stockholm; Frankfurt; Berlin; Hamburg; Madrid; Edinburgh and the West End of London. Outside the core EU centres, performance has been even more erratic, and Tel Aviv, Israel, saw a 10.5 per cent slump in rents over the quarter.