Strengthening take-up in first nine months surpasses 2016 total.
- Total transactions during the first nine months of 2017 reached 322,491 sq ft. This surpasses the total take-up level of 218,708 sq ft recorded in 2016.
- Take-up activity in Q3 was dominated by one large transaction, in which Chrysaor acquired 47,657 sq ft at The Capitol, 431 Union Street.
- Although crude oil prices remain low by long term comparisons, they have picked up in recent months and now stand at circa $58 a barrel, signalling a more optimistic picture ahead.
- Total available supply at the end of the third quarter stabilised at 2.8 million sq ft. The majority of available stock (80%) is secondhand.
- Prime headline rents in Aberdeen are once again unchanged at £32.00 per sq ft.
Derren McRae, managing director of CBRE Aberdeen, said: “With Q3 take-up registering 71,807 sq ft, take-up levels for the year to date have edged up to 312,500 sq ft – an encouraging figure given take-up levels for the same period in 2016 were around 150,000 sq ft.
“The stand out letting for Q3 in Aberdeen is Chrysaor’s 47,600 sq ft acquisition of five floors of The Capitol building on Union Street. The £3bn purchase of North Sea Assets from Shell has made the company one of the largest North Sea oil and gas producers virtually overnight. Its decision to locate to Knight Property Group and M&G’s 75,200 sq ft Grade A building not only has resulted in this recently completed speculative development becoming 95% let, but more interestingly it is the first time a major energy sector operator has relocated its staff from an out of town location back to the city centre – a break from the norm in Aberdeen.”