This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
BRISBANE is beginning to return to the pre-pandemic normal after witnessing a 31% decrease in Q3 2022 from Q3 2021.
Global workspace innovation firm The Instant Group has analysed Q3 of 2022 to assess the flexible workspace situation across the three capital cities.
Copping more COVID cases than the other capital cities in Australia and moving in and out of lockdown led to a large increase in demand for flexible workspaces in Sydney and Melbourne.
Sydney and Brisbane had increases of 5% and 8% respectively in the average cost-per-desk for flexible workspace in this quarter compared to Q3 in 2021. Melbourne went the other way with a decrease of 5%.
The number of flexible workspace centres in the market expanded across all three cities – Sydney (7%), Brisbane (5%) and Melbourne (2%) in the past 12 months.
Supply, meaning the number of flexible workspace centers in the market, grew in all three cities in Q3 2022, up by 7% in Sydney, 5% in Brisbane and 2% in Melbourne compared to Q3 2021.
There was speculation that hybrid-work would be the future, with less office space expected to be used as a result of workers only spending half a day in the actual office.
JLL’s Future of Work survey conducted earlier in 2022 directed to a different type of workplace in the future, as a result of continued uncertainty during the pandemic. Around a similar time, the ABS Census data showed that up to 2.5 million Australians were working from home.
Now it appears as though more people are returning to work, with no lockdowns and restrictions holding workers back anymore.
Regional director at Client Solutions – ANZ at The Instant Group, Daniel Tyson-Jones comments on the movements of how the workspace market has continued adapting to the changing situations.
“The flexible workspace market has shifted in 2022 compared to pandemic years, with interest returning to key business hubs like Melbourne and Sydney as we continue to live and work with no lockdowns. Demand for flex space in Brisbane dropped in Q3 compared to last year, when the city had high stock levels and high vacancies, plus a hot sub-leasing market which drove demand up. We are however seeing Brisbane pick up again in Q4,” he said.
