CBRE: “Amsterdam has had largest drop in office vacancy rates in Europe"

Amsterdam has had a larger drop in office vacancy rates than any other major European city. The office vacancy rate in the capital of the Netherlands dropped from 11.2% in 2016 to 7.6% in 2017 (a drop of 360 basis points). Berlin is in second place. There, vacancy rates fell from 6.0% to 3.9% (210 basis points). Frankfurt saw vacancy rates decline from 12.0% to 11% (100 basis points), which puts it in third place. This is one of the conclusions of the Global Gateway Cities report by CBRE.

Rudolf de Boer, Managing Director at CBRE, recognises the development now taking place in Amsterdam: “There is a lot of demand in the capital, particularly for good quality office space. We have seen a falling trend in office vacancy rates for three years in succession. Growing demand, transformation and the limited construction of new office buildings have all exacerbated shortages on the office market. We expect the vacancy rate to fall further to 6.5%.”

Great appeal

The study shows that the presence of Tech-sector companies such as Booking.com, Netflix and Uber is making the capital an increasingly attractive option. The innovative character of Amsterdam is a major reason why many companies decide to move here. Amsterdam stands out from other European cities by being very international, and by having a young, multilingual workforce.

Point of concern

The substantial demand for Amsterdam office space also has a downside. Rudolf de Boer notes that “One point of concern is our ability to maintain Amsterdam’s strong position and business climate in the future, given that less and less office space is available.”

CBRE Research’s Global Gateway Cities report includes details of a study into property developments in nine major European cities. These are: Amsterdam, Berlin, Frankfurt, London, Milan, Madrid, Munich, Paris and Stockholm.