Region''s office market ''defies trend'' - commercial mortgages

18 June 2008

In news that may be of interest top those seeking commercial mortgages, it has been stated that the office market in Yorkshire is beating national trends.

Despite the overall slowdown in the commercial property market and the economy in the wake of the credit crunch, cities such as Leeds are still performing well, according to a report by property management company Jones Lang Lasalle, reports the Business Desk.

Hailing the Yorkshire city and others such as Glasgow as better placed to weather the downturn than London, the report stated: "Our research shows office occupier demand in the Leeds city centre is well divided across four principal sectors: banking and finance, professional services, government and public sector, and service industries."

It said the city benefited from the fact that no one sector in the service economy was dominant, meaning that - unlike London where finance plays such a big role - the fact that some sectors will perform better than others would bolster the overall market.

Elsewhere, the Birmingham Post has reported that the district of Edgbaston is showing signs of leading a revival of the office rental market in the central Birmingham, following some major new lettings deals.