Offices, market data - Figures second quarter 2024 Spain

The first half of the year closes with 18% more leasing in Madrid, a total of 249,000 square metres of office space that positions it as the second best year since 2020. The gap between rent and availability between the best and oldest buildings in peripheral locations continues to widen, driven by increased interest in the quality of projects. At the same time, the office market in Barcelona experienced a growth of 45% year-on-year, reaching 165,000 square meters, driven by the return of higher volume transactions, especially in the first quarter of the year. The 22@ district is very active, contributing more than 24,000 square metres in this second quarter alone and exceeding the total area contracted in the whole of 2023 so far this year.

The recovery in contracting activity is reflected in the investment market, led by the mid-cap segment and with an average ticket of almost 30 million euros in the first half of the year. Investment in offices has exceeded 825 million euros, which represents a growth of 13% compared to figures from a year ago. The forecast is that 2024 will exceed the volumes recorded in 2023, although it is likely that we will still have to wait to see the return of high-volume operations in the sector.

Two upward trends continue to be observed: the increase in appetite for the purchase of offices for own use and the interest in the purchase of office assets that can be converted to other uses.

The stabilisation of interest rates by the ECB has mitigated the upward corrections in office prime yields, which are now at their highest since the beginning of the escalation: 4.85% in Madrid and 5.00% in Barcelona. Although the market is still attentive to the possible drop in rates, no compressions in values are yet expected in the short or medium term.