Owner-occupiers take growing share of Big Nine office investment activity

Owner occupiers are emerging as an increasingly important buyer group in the Big Nine office markets, according to the latest Big Nine office report from global commercial real estate advisor Avison Young. Over the last 12 months, they have acquired £281m of assets, accounting for 23% of overall volumes, compared with 5% in the preceding 12-month period. This has been driven by a combination of pricing, accelerating rental growth and a preference for businesses to take greater control of their portfolios.

A total of 30 deals completed during the quarter, with investment volumes totalling £282m across the quarter, and £738m across H1. The largest deal of the quarter was Northtree’s acquisition of The Lincoln Building in Manchester for £55m, reflecting the resilience of investor demand for high-quality assets in the city centre.

Take-up

Take-up in the Big Nine regional office markets reached 1.9m sq ft in Q2 2026. This is over a third (36%) greater than the previous quarter, H1 take-up has consequently climbed to 3.4m sq ft.

Despite ongoing geopolitical and economic uncertainty, Q2 take-up saw a greater volume of larger deals, driven by Government and Services occupiers acquiring standalone buildings for public sector use. Regionally, positive activity was seen in Bristol, Cardiff and Glasgow.

Grade A vacancy and prime rents

Grade A vacancy declined sharply in the second quarter, sitting at just 1.6%. Grade A vacancy remains critically low in Liverpool, Newcastle, Glasgow and Edinburgh. In Q2, all new space delivered consisted of refurbishments, including the 140,000 sq ft Hodge House in Cardiff and 100,000 sq ft Embarq in Bristol. Office prime rents increased in Cardiff and Manchester this quarter, by 12% and 7%, respectively. Rents in Bristol and Birmingham remain the highest at £52 per square foot (psf).

Guy Spencer, Director and Head of National Capital Markets at Avison Young, said:
“With regional growth now at the heart of Government policy through a renewed devolution agenda, we’re expecting the public sector to play an increasingly important role in office take-up over the next 12 months. This will be driven by employment growth, as evidenced by the recent establishment of No.10 North and progress at DWP’s headquarters in Newcastle. This will reinforce investor confidence across the regions.”

“As grade A vacancy continues to tighten across the office markets, prime rents will increase further as occupiers race to secure best-in-class space with strong ESG credentials, convenient transport links and efficient operational costs. With all new space delivered this quarter coming from refurbishments, the nature of development is clearly shifting across the office market, as construction costs remain high.”

“Despite cautious sentiment amid ongoing geopolitical and economic uncertainty, capital remains active, albeit increasingly selective. We expect the Big Nine office markets to remain resilient going into the second half of the year.”