London office investment hit £13bn in the first three quarters of the year, already matching the full-year total for 2016.
Investment totalled £4.8bn in the third quarter, close to a three-fold increase on the same period last year when only £1.7bn was transacted. It was also a 51% rise on Q2 2017.
Overseas investors drove those numbers, representing 94% of total transaction volume in the third quarter.
Over two-thirds of total investment – £3.2bn – came from Asian buyers in Q3, setting a new record for London investment from Asia.
Meanwhile, UK investors dominated the sell-side and represented 65% of disposals in the quarter.
Stephen Pearson, head of City investment at CBRE, said: “We estimate that at the end of Q3 2017 there was close to £39bn of equity targeting London, close to a record high, with Asian investors accounting for a significant proportion of this equity.
“This highlights the continued appetite for London offices among Asian investors, who have deployed £6.4bn into office assets so far this year. Pricing has remained firm for trophy assets in the capital and the continued high levels of demand are likely to be satisfied by the availability of stock, especially in the City. If a significant proportion of this stock transacts in the final quarter, investment levels could return to the levels seen in 2013 and 2014.”
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