German office take-up above 10-year average in 2012

Take-up across Germany’s six key office markets amounted to 2.1 million m² in the first nine months of the year, new research from Savills reveals.

The international real estate advisor forecasts that by year-end office take-up in Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne and Düsseldorf will reach more than 2.9 million m2, exceeding the 10-year average of 2.76 million m². The agent attributes this rise to an expected increase in the number of large office lettings due to complete in the final quarter of 2012.

Berlin and Frankfurt recorded a year-on-year increase in take-up by 6.9% and 6.1% respectively in Q3. The remaining four cities recorded a decreased level of take-up ranging between -8.8% and -29.2%.

'Overall the office sector is strong in Germany’s key markets,' said Robert Kellershohn, managing director of office agency at Savills Germany. 'The volume of new office completions is at its lowest level for the last five years with 670,000 m² coming on to the market in 2012, the majority of which has been pre-let. This has resulted in a fall in vacancy rates across the board and stable prime rents.'

According to Savills data the average vacancy rate in Germany’s key markets stood at 9.0% at the end of Q3 12, representing a decrease of 9.2% year-on-year. Berlin and Munich recorded the lowest vacancy rates of 5.4% and 6.9%, respectively. Frankfurt, which registered the highest vacancy rate at 14.3%, recorded the most significant year-on-year decrease, at -19.9%.