{"id":691951,"date":"2026-01-12T22:22:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T22:22:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/691951\/"},"modified":"2026-01-12T22:22:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T22:22:10","slug":"edinburgh-office-market-tipped-to-bounce-back-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/691951\/","title":{"rendered":"Edinburgh office market tipped to bounce back in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n It comes as figures published by property firm JLL today suggest under half a million square feet was transacted in the Edinburgh<\/a> office market in 2025, below the 10-year average. According to JLL, just four deals involving offices bigger than 15,000 square feet were completed in the city in 2025, which the company said reflected a \u201cchallenging year of cyclical market conditions and broader economic uncertainty\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n JLL noted that many businesses had instead of opted for short-term extensions, with 250,000 square feet of \u201cre-gears\u201d in addition to the new take-up reported.\n<\/p>\n

\n However, the agent declared that it expects this trend shifting in 2026, highlighting a \u201cknown pipeline\u201d of occupiers which are already seeking new space. It is predicting the start of a \u201cnew market cycle that will prompt more companies to make strategic relocation decisions\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n Read more:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\n Hannah Done, director at JLL in Edinburgh, said: \u201cWhile the amount of space transacted on in 2025 was lower than we would typically expect, the reality is that activity levels do not reflect what is happening beneath the surface. We are seeing occupiers plan further ahead than ever before, assessing their options three, four, even five years before their leases expire.\n<\/p>\n

\n “This strategic approach is entirely rational in a market with such limited Grade A supply. We are therefore entering 2026 with a stronger pipeline of requirements\u2013 and with improved market fundamentals expected across the UK, we anticipate this translating into increased transaction activity and continued rental growth for the best buildings.”\n<\/p>\n

\n The analysis from JLL comes shortly after commercial property experts interviewed by The Herald declared that predictions of the \u201cdeath of the office\u201d made during the pandemic had finally been quashed.\n<\/p>\n

\n One expert said some companies had \u201cdownsized too quickly\u201d as people switched to home working shortly after Covid struck, leaving them scrambling to find sufficient space for their needs. However, industry figures highlighted a continuing dearth of prime office space in Scotland\u2019s major cities.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cThe so-called \u201cdeath of the office\u201d that many predicted during and after the pandemic was never going to play out,\u201d said Alasdair Steele, head of Scotland commercial at Knight Frank.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cThere has been a noticeable increase in the number of people returning to offices this year [2025] \u2013 particularly in Edinburgh. That obviously bodes well going into next year [2026] and, even if many people are still only going into the office three days per week, it is still a very important part of the way occupiers do business.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n JLL said today that working habits have now \u201cstabilised\u201d, meaning that occupiers are more confident about their space requirements and prioritising high-quality stock that is \u2018commute-worthy\u2019 and offers a “high-quality experience for their employees\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n It also expects that \u201cflex\u201d office space will continue to be in high demand, stating that the city\u2019s shortage of stock presents opportunities for more capacity and new entrants.\n<\/p>\n

\n JLL highlighted that a range of extensive refurbishments currently in the pipeline in Edinburgh. These include The Cube on Leith Street, which is expected to be the city\u2019s only \u201cdeep retrofit\u201d delivered this year and to achieve premium rents.\n<\/p>\n

\n And it said that pre-letting talks are anticipated on a number of \u201csignificant\u201d schemes\u201d, including investment giant Aviva and real estate developer Bell Hammer\u2019s Rosebery 185,000 square foot office project at Haymarket, known as New Yards, which was launched to the market in 2025.\n<\/p>\n

\n However, JLL reported that there are no speculative developments in the pipeline, which it said will give prospective tenants the impetus to begin pre-letting discussions.\n<\/p>\n

\n The agent meanwhile signalled that it expects the fortunes of West Edinburgh to improve this year, following a series of small deals in 2025. Refurbishments are planned or underway at 6 Lochside Avenue, BASE and 3 Lochside Avenue, with all projects \u201cgeared towards sustainability and employee experience, and with rental levels significantly below those in the city centre\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It comes as figures published by property firm JLL today suggest under half a million square feet was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":691952,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,1102,4884,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-691951","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-edinburgh","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-scotland","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115884467773048048","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691951","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=691951"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691951\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/691952"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=691951"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=691951"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=691951"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}