64,000 square meters of new offices were put into operation in Sofia in the first quarter of the current year. Thus, the percentage of vacant areas is slightly higher - from 9.5% to 9.8%. Major clients continue to be IT and BPO companies.
A high percentage of office buildings that have been put into operation have managed to find their tenants before they open their doors. Because of this, the correction in the share of free space is low.
For the first quarter of 2019, the office space under construction in the capital is 427,000 square meters. With the completion of new projects, the supply of Class A and B officesduring the period reached 1,882 million square meters. It is expected that over 200 000 square meters will be put into operation through the entire 2019 and the first months of 2020.
"This is a significant volume, but considering that about 45% of these offices are negotiated with tenants still under construction, we do not expect their commissioning to bring about significant market changes this year. In the medium term, our forecast is for more tangible growth in vacant space and possibly a slight pressure on rental levels, "says Stanimira Pashova, Office Manager at Cushman & Wakefield Forton.
The offered rental rates are kept unchanged compared to the previous quarter - 15 EUR / sq.m for the highest class of offices in the center of Sofia and 13-14 EUR / sq.m for prime areas on the big boulevards.
