Take-up

2022 take-up, totalling 620,000 sq ft, was 8% above the five-year annual average for the market. This was made up of 116 completed lettings which was 18% above the five-year annual average and the most completed transactions since 2016.

Grade A take-up of 198,000 sq ft accounted for 32% of the take-up total. The largest Grade A deal in 2022 was the 55,000 sq ft acquisition by Paymentsense at CEG’s EQ building.

Supply

Total supply stood at 850,000 sq ft at the end of 2022. This means that there is just one-and-a-half years of supply in the market based on average demand.

Grade A supply stood at 210,000 sq ft at year end. Whilst this was an increase of 22% on 2021, this was due to the introduction of Buildings B and C Assembly into the supply list, and 25% of the space at these buildings has already been pre-let. Furthermore, with a Grade A vacancy rate of just 1.7%, availability for the best-in-class space remains severely limited in Bristol.

Take-up by business sector

The TMT sector continues to perform strongly in Bristol and was the most active sector again in 2022, accounting for 40% of total take-up. This was spread across 30 deals at an average of 7,588 sq ft.

Elsewhere, it was also a strong year for the Professional sector. The 21 completed transactions accounted for 18% of total take-up, the largest being the 22,500 sq ft letting at Halo to Deloitte.

Rents

There was no increase in the prime rent in Q4, but there was 12% of rental growth in 2022, with prime rent currently standing at £42.50 per sq ft. Furthermore, at £42.50 per sq ft, Bristol has the highest prime rent in the UK Big Six markets. Average Grade A rents have also increased significantly during this period. The average Grade A rent in 2022 was £38.29 per sq ft, a 4% increase on the 2021 Grade A average and a 24% increase on the pre-Covid 2019 average.

Interested in other areas of the UK?

View all of our latest Q4 2022 Occupational Office Data research here.