Dubai prime office occupancy costs are under $100 per sq ft, well below global counterparts: Savills study

Dubai prime office occupancy costs are under $100 per sq ft, well below global counterparts: Savills study

Global property consultants Savills have conducted an analysis of prime office costs in markets around the world. According to the new Savills Prime Office Costs (SPOC) insights, London, Hong Kong and Tokyo topped the table of 29 countries for net effective occupier office costs at the start of 2022. The net effective cost to occupiers includes the gross rent (inclusive of property taxes and service charges) plus fit-out costs, less any concessions for rent-free periods.

Dubai, the only Middle Eastern city to be included in the analysis, took the 14th spot on the table, with costs coming in at $93.86 per sq ft (psf), well under its global counterparts such as London (West End and City), New York (Midtown and Downtown), Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Beijing and Shanghai. London (West End) was the most expensive at $267.84 psf whilst Kuala Lumpur was the least expensive office market at $45.89 psf. The emirate is currently the only EMEA city to report the highest office occupancy levels after Asian cities tracked in the Savills study.

From growing costs for raw materials to increasing labour costs to keep up with rising inflation, it is likely that in the coming quarters, office occupiers will have to