DUBAI OFFICE MARKET REPORTS ROBUST PERFORMANCE IN Q1

Dubai office rents have remained robust in the first quarter of 2016 on the back of continuing strong demand from domestic and international tenants, real estate consultancy firm Cluttons has revealed. The company’s first office market bulletin also reveals that rents in 13 Dubai submarkets remained stable, while seven submarkets witnessed notable increases.

The addition of two new office-focused zones in 2015, Dubai Design District (D3) and Dubai World Trade District (DWTD), also piqued the interest of commercial occupiers and developers, the Cluttons Spring 2016 Dubai Office Market Bulletin reported. D3’s lower and upper limit free-zone rents have registered a 67 percent and 28 percent rise respectively since launch. The strongest-performing submarket in ‘New Dubai’ in 2015 was the Tecom, Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Dubai Knowledge Village area, which experienced a 10 percent hike in lower limit rents, while upper limit rents rose 13 percent.

An emerging Dubai submarket tipped for greatness is the Dubai Sports City (DSC) precinct. The First Group has stolen a march on the competition here as the only office space provider in the area. As a result, the company’s SOLO Business Centre, operated by the Regus Group, saw occupancy rates rise 63 percent from an average of 57 percent in the July to December 2014 period to 93 percent in July to December 2015. SOLO Business Centre is currently undergoing expansion to meet burgeoning demand from current and potential tenants, with inventory being increased from 56 to 72 offices. Another up-and-coming Dubai office market is Dubai South, close to Al Maktoum International – Dubai World Central (DWC) and the World Expo 2020 site.