Rise in Southeast transactions predicted
A sharp rise in the number of occupier transactions could be on the cards as a new report by property agency SHW indicates that there are 3.5 million ft2 of lease events scheduled across the region.
By Liza Helps Property Editor Logistics Matters
DESPITE TAKE Up being down by 56% in H1 2024 compared to the the prevous six months across the South East industrial market, SHW’s Partner and Head of Agency Tim Hardwicke notes: “With a new government now in place and interest rates widely expected to decrease imminently, backed by the large number of lease events due over the next 18 months, we are expecting transactions to increase, bringing take up back to an annual average.”
In the core South London market, take up levels dropped 19%, Mid Sussex showed a drop of 85%, with Crawley & Gatwick down by 79%. There were some exceptions across the region for example with Brighton & Hove take up increasing by 212%.
Rents have remained static in most areas across the South East markets, with a couple of exceptions: Eastbourne, Hailsham & Polegate have seen achieved rents increase from £12.50 to £12.75 per ft2; and in Hastings, St Leonards and Bexhill rents have jumped from £9 per ft2 in 2023 to £10.50 per ft2 this year.”
New schemes becoming available include Phase 2 of Prologis Park Beddington (Croydon), which will provide four new units totalling 90,000 ft2 this year, and GLI’s CR1 (on site now) and CR2 totalling 107,770 ft2 in Croydon. Panattoni Park Brighton is also now available to occupy providing multi-let units from 19,5000 ft2.
