Home Industry Real Estate Dubai among top 20 cities for highest office rents in skyscrapers Prime skyscraper office rents in Dubai remained unchanged in the last six months by Aarti Nagraj September 15, 2016 Dubai ranks among the top 20 cities with the highest prime office rents in high-rise towers, according to the latest Skyscraper Index by Knight Frank. Prime office rents for upper floors in skyscrapers in the emirate are priced at $43.50 per sqft per annum, the report found. The rental value has remained unchanged in the last six months, in line with the stagnant wider Dubai property market. Overall, rents in commercial towers in Asia-Pacific are increasing the fastest, Knight Frank stated. The report, which examines the rental performance of commercial buildings over 30 storeys, found that rents in Hong Kong’s skyscrapers are the highest in the world at $278.50 per sqft. It is followed by New York, where rents have reached $158 per sqft and Tokyo ($149.50 per sqft). Meanwhile skyscrapers in Shanghai recorded the strongest rental growth in the first half of 2016 at 7.6 per cent. Dana Salbak, associate partner, Knight Frank Dubai Research, said: “Over the first half of the year we have seen skyscrapers in Asia-Pacific outperform their counterparts in Europe and North America. “Rents in Hong Kong’s skyscrapers remain the highest in the world, and with demand likely to outstrip supply for the foreseeable future we expect the city to retain its top position in the Index. Furthermore, the supply-demand dynamics in Hong Kong will continue to support rental growth in Shanghai’s skyscrapers, as many companies opt to relocate there. “Shifts in the occupational markets in Sydney and Taipei have intensified demand for space in skyscrapers, and we expect both cities to perform strongly over the second half of the year.” TOP 20 CITIES WITH THE HIGHEST OFFICE RENTS FOR UPPER FLOORS IN SKYSCRAPERS Ranking City Rent (sqft/per annum) Percentage growth in six months to Q2 2016 1 Hong Kong $278.50 5.9% 2 New York (Manhattan) $158.00 1.9% 3 Tokyo $149.50 0% 4 London (City) $114.00 0% 5 San Francisco $113.00 2.7% 6 Sydney $90.75 6.6% 7 Boston $77.00 0% 8 Singapore $72.00 -7% 9 Shanghai $72.00 7.6% 10 Beijing $63.00 3.3% 11 Chicago $59.00 0% 12 Paris (La Défense) $56.50 0% 13 Mumbai $53.00 4.7% 14 Miami $53.00 2% 15 Frankfurt $52.50 0% 16 Toronto $49.00 4.9% 17 Melbourne $47.00 3% 18 Los Angeles $46.00 2.2% 19 Mexico City $44.59 0.6% 20 Dubai $43.50 0% 0 Comments