Birmingham office market hits seven year high

Last year saw Birmingham’s city centre office market deliver its strongest year since 2017, according to the findings of a new report.

According to findings of the Q4 2024 Birmingham Office Market Review, by commercial property agent, KWB, last year saw a 23 per cent increase in the take-up of office space in the city on the five-year average.

A total of 843,218 sq ft of city centre office space was adopted across a total of 96 transactions in 2024, marking the third largest annual take-up of office square footage over the last 15 years.

The market’s success was led by landmark deals for BBC Birmingham’s new home at the 84,000 sq ft Typhoo Wharf in Digbeth’s creative quarter and Aston University’s adoption of 189,053 sq ft at 10 Woodcock Street. The latter is now home to Aston Business School, Aston Law School, Aston Vision Sciences and the University’s new state-of-the-art Aston Integrated Healthcare Hub.

Average transaction size also reached a four-year peak of 8,784 sq ft – the largest the city’s office market has seen since 2020.

Notable within the report’s findings was the emerging trend for large, high-profile deals being supported by several mid-range transactions, which KWB reports contributed to consistently strong performance across all four quarters last year.

Malcolm Jones (pictured), director of Office Agency at KWB, said: “The performance of the office market in Birmingham last year shows just how well the city’s commercial property market has bounced back since being decimated by the impact of the pandemic. Ending the year with a seven-year high shows just how much consistency and confidence there is in this market, which provides a healthy platform for further growth over the course of this year.”

2024 was a landmark year for the Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) and education sectors, with the latter adopting over 315,000 sq ft of office space in Birmingham – its largest take-up since records began.

Malcolm added: “While landmark deals in the education sector may grab some of the headlines, the range of transaction sizes completed in 2024 proves that Birmingham city centre can continue to be an exciting prospect for different sized businesses across a multitude of sectors.”

Visit KWB’s website (kwboffice.com) to read its latest Birmingham Office Market Review.