MEES will render 90% of office space in key cities unlettable

Nine-tenths of office space in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Bristol will be unlettable by 2030, and nearly a fifth of the UK’s office space is effectively unlettable now, Carter Jonas has warned. Measuring the supply of office space by EPC rating, Carter Jonas found that 17% of it sits in bands F and G and will therefore be legally unlettable unless remedial action has been taken. The report did note, however, that in reality this figure will be lower given that exemptions will apply to some properties and others will be in the process of being modified. The report echoes EG’s own findings of real estate’s unpreparedness and the cost of the EPC rules, which was published last year. The Office Market Sustainability Index compared the average sustainability level of the office stock across 12 markets. It has found that Oxford, Cardiff and Edinburgh have the highest percentage of low-quality offices. Cities including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Bristol could find that 70% of their stock will be unlettable by 2027 without capital investment, potentially increasing to 90% and above in 2030. Only 28% of the total UK office supply is high quality and this is where most of the demand is now focused, Carter Jonas added. The Times (£)