Take up in the technology sector in the G5 fluctuated between 15% and 20% of all office take-up in recent years. Amsterdam was responsible for 80% of office take-up in the tech sector of all G5 cities between 2018 and 2022. This expansion has partly been fuelled by foreign Venture Capital (VC) investment, and supported by central banks’ expansive monetary policy. Now that policy is tightening, capital availability has returned to ‘normal’ levels. Foreign VC-investors are shying away from the Dutch market, with a drop of 81% in non-domestic activity in 2022 Q4 compared to 2021 highs.

Consequently, many tech firms are reassessing their business model and adjusting their growth projections accordingly. Redundancies are becoming more common, while various firms are offering redundant office space back to the market via sublease.

Despite the downturn, the Dutch technology sector still has a vibrant future. Companies with healthy business- and growth models will remain strong players in the Dutch economy and Dutch real estate market. Segments like software development and high-tech manufacturing are still performing exceptionally well.

Savills, therefore, expects that more modest Dutch tech sector demand will not lead to a large disruption in the Dutch office market. Many Dutch tech companies are in high quality buildings, where supply and demand are extremely tight. We do not expect large increases in office vacancy if VC-funded tech companies downsize, as there is strong demand for high quality office space from other business sectors.

Nevertheless, some Dutch technology companies are re-evaluating their office space requirements in response to lower growth projections. As a result, technology companies that need to implement rigorous cost-cutting measures to stay afloat are opting to offer redundant office space back to the market in the form of subleases. Savills estimates that approximately 20,000 sq. m of office space is available for sublease in the Greater Amsterdam Area. This is roughly 4.2% of the total office supply in the region. It is remarkable that about 65% of the space that is being offered for sublease is currently leased by technology companies, with a large share of this office space being located in the Amsterdam City Centre or at the Amsterdam Zuidas.