Office rents may halve

AFTER two years of being squeezed by soaring rents, office tenants are finally seeing the market turn in their favour.
Up to four years of falling or flat rents are in store for them as a wave of upcoming office space outstrips lacklustre demand, according to a new report by property consultancy Savills.

Grade A space rents of such offices are predicted to drop 30 per cent to 40 per cent this year, and a further 20 per cent to 25 per cent next year.

Office rents have generally come off by 10 per cent from the peak last year, although for new lettings we've seen more like a 25 per cent drop.

Cushman & Wakefield managing director Donald Han is tipping a 20 per cent decline in rents this year and another 20 per cent fall next year, although he said the drops may be bigger if Singapore's economic outlook continues to worsen.