Office leasing activity rising steadily in city

Madhapur: Around 47.4 million square feet of office space was leased out in 2018 across nine major cities in the country, with an annual growth of 5.3 per cent, a major real estate sector consultant CBRE said in a report. Bengaluru recorded the largest share among the cities in terms of space leased out in the commercial segment, said the report named "Realty Bytes: CBRE". 

"By the end of 2018, gross leasing activity surpassed the 45 million square feet-mark and touched about 47.4 million square feet, recording a growth of 5.3 per cent year on year.Bangalore (Bengaluru), followed by NCR (National Capital Region), Hyderabad and Mumbai dominated office leasing even on an annual basis, accounting for almost 80 per cent of the overall space take-up," it said. 

The other cities where the survey was carried out were Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, Kochi, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.Flexible space operators accounted for about 6 per cent of quarterly leasing, taking-up space in core and secondary locations. Other sectors such as research and consulting (5 per cent) also contributed to leasing activity.

Speaking on the outlook for the sector, Anshuman Magazine, Head of India, South East Asia, Middle East and Africa, CBRE said: "Office leasing activity is expected to remain stable in the short term, backed by corporates looking to expand or consolidate their operations. Similar to last year, we expect that occupiers would put in greater efforts to build in flexibility in their portfolios due to changes in the business environment." 

Being the realty hotspot in South India; the Telangana government’s proactive policies, growing occupier demand, improved infrastructure, quality educational institutions and the availability of a large talent pool have helped bring back attention to Hyderabad real estate market, CBRE had said earlier. 

Out of the overall number of projects across India, Hyderabad region has 18% projects in 2018.  The city has emerged as the key region for growth with 100% increase in project portfolio; followed closely by Mumbai, Bangalore & NCR. The total value of projects (completed and in progress) handled by CBRE Project Management India in 2018 would be over USD 8 Billion.

Additionally, the city has witnessed significant infrastructure developments including the Hyderabad metro, multi-level flyovers, electronic manufacturing clusters and an Integrated Pharma city over the past two years. Hyderabad is witnessing renewed interest for residential, retail, industrial & logistics space in recent years and continues to be the most affordable market for residential buyers, especially in the premium/luxury and high end/mid-end segments.

Apart from a robust commercial and industrial landscape, the city’s retail segment has also witnessed enhanced activity of late with organized retail stock to touch 10 million sq. ft. by 2019, according to CBRE projections released in December last.