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UK commercial property values and rents are predicted to “tumble off a cliff edge” in the first quarter of 2023, as estate agents warn offices will fare worst as prices fall.

A survey of more than 400 commercial agents forecast a 2.9 per cent decrease in prices per square foot across the sector in the first three months of the year, with offices falling 3.1 per cent.

The report, compiled by London-based firm Robert Irving Burns, said the “decidedly negative” outlook would mean “values and rents tumble off a cliff edge”, in the sharpest quarterly drop in the past five years of comparable data.

RIB managing director Antony Antoniou said the deterioration was due to a mix of factors including rising interest rates and the fallout of Liz Truss’s ill-fated “mini” Budget, which triggered a pause in transactions and a pullback in lending.

 

Booking.com