The market for office space in Reading is set to benefit from sliding rents and rent-free periods, experts claim.
Falling rents and incentive schemes will fuel an upturn in the Reading office market, it has been predicted.
Speaking at an industry forum, David Thomas, associate at property agent Vail Williams, said that the availability of good quality well priced office space is bearing up well.
However, this will improve further, he said, adding that the appearance of incentives such as longer rent-free deals will prove a catalyst for marked improvement in months to come.
Mr Thomas commented: “Obviously many firms have had their capital budgets frozen and gone through scores of redundancies, but these factors can be seen as an opportunity to move premises in order to save costs.
“It’s really whether firms have the confidence and ability to move forward on their leases.”
Town-centre office complexes predicted to benefit from prevailing market conditions include Forbury Square, The Blade and the Apex Plaza, which is located just seconds from the town’s main rail terminus.
The economic downturn has impacted heavily on demand for Reading office space this year, with just 100,000 sq ft sq ft of serviced office space lets since the start of the year.
By way of comparison, during the same period in 2007 take up was eight times higher at 800,000 sq ft.