Dublin office rent among world’s highest

DUBLIN is one of the most expensive places in the world to rent office space — although the supply of office space continues to rise.

The cost of a square metre of office space per year in Dublin is €646 compared with €318 in Barcelona, €480 in Madrid and €430 in Rome.

Dublin is beaten by London city (€967) and the West End (€1,685) districts, Moscow (€1,163) and Paris (€825).

As a result of such costs, those looking to rent in the capital are seeking more competitive terms, according to a report from property advisers Jones Lang LaSalle. It said there is a demand in Dublin for flexible lease terms, with an increasing number of occupiers are seeking additional space in the suburban market to reduce costs.

Dublin has 235,349 sq m of space under construction or due for completion this year, with more than 50% of this space already reserved or pre-let. The report also said 54,197sq m of new office space was completed in Dublin during Q4, 2007.

Director at Jones Lang LaSalle in Ireland, Fionnuala O’Buachalla, said competition for quality grade A office space in Ireland remains intense and, in some cases, choice is extremely constrained.

“There is unlikely to be any significant injection of new supply in the short term,” she said.

“As a result, corporate clients who wish to acquire quality space — and who also wish to take up occupation in the first half of this year — now face a considerable challenge.”