Higher take-up: Central London agents have worked hard to raise Q3 take-up, producing some surprising changes in the league table. By Stacey Meadwell
Central London bucked the downward trend by recording slightly improved take-up figures in Q3 2008, and the agents’ league table, compiled by EGi London Offices, yielded some surprising results, too.
CB Richard Ellis pole-vaulted six places to head the table, knocking Jones Lang LaSalle off the top spot. JLL need not be too downhearted, however. When the table is broken down into sectors, the agent still leads the race in the City and Midtown.
Two surprise entrants into the central London top 10 are Savills and GVA Grimley. The former must have had a very busy Q3 because it has leapt a staggering 15 places to take the number four slot. GVA has moved from 17th to eighth position.
But for every mover up the league, there has to be someone moving down. In Q3, it was King Sturge and Drivers Jonas that stumbled, both dropping out of the top 10. Is this a reflection of a weaker City market compared with the West End?
The biggest change in the Q3 figures, when compared with Q2, is the market share of the top three agents. During the past three months, CBRE, DTZ and JLL took 58% of deals between them. In Q2, the top three agents took just 28%.
Maybe it is just a blip, but with fewer deals in the pot to start with, there will no doubt be concern among the smaller firms keen to keep a slice of the action.
With a good two-and-a-half months to go before the year ends, there is still time for the league table to change again.
Compiling the figures for disposals for the year to the end of Q3, DTZ still heads the table for the third quarter running, having been top overall in 2007. It will be welcome news for the firm, which has had a run of bad news in recent weeks.
Jostling to take the second and third spots at the end of the year are Knight Frank, CBRE and Jones Lang LaSalle.
| Central London agents league tableCB Richard Ellis has swooped up the league to rise from seventh position to the top | |||||
| Rank | Agent | Rank Q2 | Disposals (sq ft) | No. deals | Market share (%) |
| 1 | CB Richard Ellis | 7 | 584,410 | 31 | 21 |
| 2 | DTZ | 2 | 579,890 | 40 | 20 |
| 3 | Jones Lang LaSalle | 1 | 460,400 | 33 | 17 |
| 4 | Savills | 20 | 298,500 | 10 | 11 |
| 5 | Knight Frank | 3 | 274,720 | 22 | 10 |
| 6 | Strutt & Parker | 15 | 220,670 | 32 | 8 |
| 7 | Cushman & Wakefield | 7 | 207,000 | 19 | 7 |
| 8 | GVA | 17 | 162,350 | 16 | 6 |
| 9 | BH2 | 9 | 135,470 | 9 | 5 |
| 10 | Atisreal | – | 123,290 | 13 | 4Source: EGi London Offices |
