Glasgow office market towers to record high

Glasgow's office occupier market has signed off on its most active year since records began, new figures reveal.

Significant deals included Clydesdale Banks pre-let at Bothwell Street. Picture: Contributed

In the final quarter of 2018, almost 233,000 square feet was transacted in the city centre, taking total take-up for the year to 1,425,419 sq ft – a year-on-year increase of 127 per cent, according to property consultancy JLL.

Significant deals which contributed to the record breaking total included Barclays 470,000 sq ft purchase at Buchanan Wharf, a major pre-let of 187,000 sq ft to HMRC at Atlantic Square and Clydesdale Bank’s 110,955 sq ft pre-let at 177 Bothwell Street.

Alistair Reid, director at JLL in Glasgow, said: “Last year’s success will be difficult to replicate over the next 12 months given the unique circumstances which led to this record breaking year.

“Most of the year’s largest deals were pre-lets and the Barclays transaction of nearly half a million sq ft made such a significant impact on the take-up figures.

“2018 was a stellar year for the city and even if the major pre-let deals such as Barclays and HMRC are removed from the figures, 2018’s year-end total is still ahead of the five-year average.

“Clearly there are concerns within the market over the uncertain economic environment in 2019 and how this could impact upon occupier’s decisions. However, the continued limited speculative development and overall supply should reward those developers and landlords who are brave enough to press on with their projects.”