Regional view: Greater Manchester

EG will be touching down in Manchester on 8 June with the return of EG Cities Live. The free event, which takes place at the Kimpton Clocktower from 5pm, will take a deep dive into the future of the city’s workforce and workplaces. Register to attend EG Cities Live: Manchester >> While statistics show a small increase in workers returning to the office, occupancy still remains well below pre-pandemic levels. Is this the new normal, or can our cities and workplaces tempt us back to our desks? With some 9.5m sq ft of offices currently under construction in the Greater Manchester area, according to the latest figures from EG Radius, the city certainly needs workers back. However, EG Radius figures for the year to 6 June reveal a much quieter office market across the city. So far, submitted deals to EG Radius show take-up in the region is just 208,605 sq ft. This compares with close to 822,000 sq ft for the same period in 2021. The number of deals has dropped from 168 in 2021 to 104 this year. Investment activity has also declined, with just £86.5m of deals submitted to EG Radius so far in 2022, compared with £206.7m for the same period in 2021. Yields have tightened, however, from an average of 6.88% to 6.31%. The continued lack of clarity over exactly what the future of work might look like appears to be having an impact on proposed office development across Greater Manchester. EG Radius data reveals just 136,640 sq ft of office development applications have been submitted so far this year, with permission granted for 574,017 sq ft of office schemes. This compares with 808,552 sq ft and 782,988 sq ft respectively in Q1 2021. A total of just over 2m sq ft of office schemes are projected to be completed across Greater Manchester this year. Is the Manchester office market in decline, rebalancing in a post-pandemic world, or gearing up for the next phase of levelling up? Join us at the Kimpton Clocktower on 8 June to debate the future of the city’s office market and much, much more. Claim your free space to join the debate here. Explore and compare property in Greater Manchester here >> Image © Mark Campbell/Shutterstock