London's West End is considered to have the most expensive office occupancy rate in the world with US$273 per sq. ft. per year, while Hong Kong and Beijing garnered the four remaining spots in the Top 5, according to the CBRE's Global Prime Office Occupancy Cost Survey.
The Global Prime Office Occupancy Cost Survey of CBRE tracks occupancy costs for prime office space in 126 markets around the globe. Out of the Top 50 'most expensive markets,' 19 were in EMEA, 20 were in Asia Pacific, and 11 were in the Americas.
Here is the list of the Top 10 Most Expensive Office Occupancy Rates in the world, with their corresponding cost per sq. ft. per year.
1. London-West End: $273
2. Hong Kong-Central: $269
3. Beijing-Finance Street: $191
4. Beijing-Central Business District: $183
5. Hong Kong-West Kowloon: $162
6. New Delhi-Connaught Place Central Business District: $151
7.5. Tokyo-Marunouchi Otemachi: $149
7.5. London City: $149
8. Shanghai-Pudong: $135
9. New York-Midtown Manhattan: $127
10. Moscow: $126
According to the press release of CBRE in Business Wire, Prime occupancy costs--which reflect rent, plus local taxes and service charges--increased at a 2.4 percent annual pace globally. The prime occupancy cost in America has increased by 3.1 percent year-over-year. EMEA prime occupancy rate rose by 2.2 percent, while the cost in Asia Pacific has increased by 2.9 percent.
"The global services sector has grown steadily for four years now, which helps to explain the general uplift in office rents and costs we are seeing worldwide," said Richard Barkham, global chief economist, CBRE. "Despite the fact that some markets have been hit by the China, oil and commodities slowdowns, we expect that most advanced economies will keep growing in 2016 and 2017, which combined with limited availability and relatively muted development levels, will result in moderate 2 percent to 3 percent cost increases."
