Research
2011
GLOBAL REAL ESTATE MARKETS Annual review & outlook
Highlights • Globally, commercial property markets are in the midst of a multi-speed recovery. While considerable variations remain between markets, the improvement of the world economy in 2010 helped to boost demand for office space in most cities, and a growing number have seen rents rise and vacancy rates fall. In many markets, particularly in North America and Europe, this process has been aided by a sharp slowing of development completions. • Rental growth has been led by the world’s major financial centres, with office rents rising in cities such as London, New York, Hong Kong and Singapore. In contrast, rents continue to come under downward pressure in a smaller group of markets, including Los Angeles, Madrid, Seoul and Dubai, where the economic outlook remains uncertain or availability is high. • Improved investor confidence helped transactional activity to increase across all global regions in 2010. Investment volumes are likely to rise further in 2011, albeit remaining well below pre-downturn levels.