Commercial property 'not fulfilling demand'

Office design news from Morgan Lovell

Published on 06-04-2009

The number of commercial properties currently coming up for auction has fallen by 20 per cent in the last year, leaving many investors unable to make purchases.

Figures compiled by the Essential Information Group (EIG) have revealed that there were 3,159 lots offered in February 2009, compared to 3,982 in February 2008 - down by 20.7 per cent year-on-year.

Simon Parker, head of commercial auctions at Savills, said: "There's not quite as much as we would like to see and the reason for the [increased] prices is there is actually not enough stock to meet the demand from these cash-rich buyers."

He added that sellers are, however, receiving a good return on investment and are receiving a premium for what property is on sale.

According to EIG, the percentage of commercial properties which sold at auction actually increased in February - up to 74 per cent in comparison to 68 per cent in January.