And according to JLL, most of the space overhanging the market is in the hands of occupiers. Director of City Agency Martin Wallace said: "Occupiers control around 70% of available space in the City. If the banks were the accidental landlords of the 1990s, the occupiers are those of the 2000s."
Availability continued to rise during the final quarter of 2002, taking the overall vacancy rate to 6.1% in the West End and to 10.0% in the City, up from 5.0% and 7.2% respectively a year ago.
And the prospects are no better for 2003. JLL estimated that active demand in the West End is static at around 2.6 million sf, while potential demand has fallen back to two million sf, the lowest for six years. And City demand fell back by around 30% during Q4 as Allen & Overy's 750,000 sf requirement was fulfilled and more requirements were shelved.
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