ACT has lowest CBD A-grade office vacancy rate in country

Number 38 Sydney Avenue in Forrest’s parliamentary precinct is a rare beast indeed – in fact, if it had four legs it would be a unicorn.

It is confidently believed this landmark building is the only A-grade (whole) building available for lease in Canberra.

And that just about sums up the upper end of the Canberra office market in the first quarter of 2019, according to the latest sector report from Colliers International.

There’s a lot of demand. In fact, there was 69,166 square metres of demand recorded in that period with nearly 70 per cent coming from the government sector.

And that was more than 100 per cent higher than for the same time last year with spaces between 1000 square metres to more than 3000 square metres in highest demand.

According to Colliers International leasing director Michael Ceacis, there are three main drivers.

“There’s a desire for accommodation upgrades, a need to improve office efficiency and/or a search for more space,” he says.

“Employers are also looking to provide modern amenities for staff like end-of-trip facilities, environmentally friendly accommodation and space close to public car parking and transport.”

Canberra is also impressing in another key metric.

“We currently have the lowest CBD A-Grade office vacancy rates in the nation. The vacancy rate in the city centre stands at just 1.7 per cent, and we predict it will fall even further by the end of the year,” Ceacis says.

FORREST

38 Sydney Avenue

Price guide: $445 – $460 + GST per square metre per annum

For lease

Agent: Colliers International Canberra, Michael Ceacis 0409 321 126