Global prime office occupancy costs—which reflect rent, local taxes and service charges for the top office markets on the globe— rose 2.4 percent year-over-year, according to CBRE's annual Global Prime Office Occupancy Costs report.
The firm ranked Hong Kong Central as the most expensive, with prime occupancy costs of $307 per sq. ft. per year. In all, markets in the Asia region account for nearly half the sub-markets on CBRE's list.
“For the first time in this cycle, prime office occupancy cost growth was consistent across all regions,” CBRE Global Chief Economist Richard Barkham said in a statement.“Global economic growth has stimulated robust leasing activity, particularly in EMEA and APAC. While occupancy cost growth in the Americas slowed slightly compared to a year earlier, it remains the region with the overall largest increase in costs. We expect global office occupancy costs to increase by approximately 2 percent in the year ahead.”
Aside form the most expensive markets, CBRE also looked at the biggest movers in both directions. Durban, South Africa, had the largest 12-month increase, with occupancy costs in local currency rising 21.4 percent. Dubai, U.A.E., meanwhile, had the largest year-over-year decrease, with occupancy costs falling 15.4 percent.
The following gallery includes the top 20 markets in CBRE's reports ranked by occupancy costs, and also includes some additional metrics for each sub-market.
