Central Urban
Districts
Creative Urban
Environment
Suburban
Business Parks
Urban relocation %
Business
services
41%
Financial
services
56%
TMT
46%
Importance of rail station < 10 minute walk
Preferred location
75%
EMEA
82%
APAC
CBD
40%
32%
56%
URBAN CREATIVE
26%
19%
15%
SUBURBAN PARK
24%
15%
22%
CBD locations are
preferred across sectors
(40% respondents)
mainly real estate
companies
Creative urban environments
are popular with business
services and construction
and architecture sectors
Industrial TMT occupiers
favor suburban
business parks
53%
NORTH
AMERICA
A HOP, SKIP OR JUMP AWAY
Variations in location preference are found in different industry
sectors. In EMEA, 67% of financial services firms may move
office functions back to urban environments, while 45% of
TMT sector fi ms are c nsideri g the same strategy. In North
America, the possibility of moving from suburban to urban
locations has occurred to 45% of financial services firms and
50% of TMT occupiers, while 67% of life science operators
continue to favor suburban areas.
Location decisions often illustrate the tensions among
different drivers and objectives, as companies seek the right
balance of cost reduction, talent access, visibility to customers
and flexibility. Most respondents, especially in EMEA and
North America, view these conflicting objectives as difficult to
reconcile outside of core urban areas, which provide access
to talent, offer branding opportunities, and enhance flexibility.
Approximately 43% of respondents said their organizations
plan to relocate suburban sites to more central locations,
and this trend has increased year on year. To meet cost
targets, companies relocating to urban reas increasingly
adopt agile workplace strategies, making better use of more
expensive space.
28%
IDENTIFY COST AS THE PRIMARY KEY DRIVER
49