According to recent data published by JLL on September 23, the gross effective rent for CBD Grade A offices in 3Q2024 has remained steady at $11.50 psf per month (pm), following a 0.7% q-o-q growth in 2Q2024. This marks a slowdown from the 1.4% q-o-q growth seen in 1Q2024.
This rental growth plateau aligns with the second consecutive quarter of increasing vacancy rates for Grade A offices in the CBD, reaching 8.3% q-o-q in 3Q2024. The main contributing factor to this rise is the recent completion of the IOI Central Boulevard Towers (IOICBT). JLL observes that tenants are becoming more resistant to rental hikes in light of this upward trend in vacancy rates. Excluding the IOICBT, the CBD Grade A vacancy rate would have remained relatively tight, similar to the post-pandemic low of 5.3% in 1Q2024.
However, the global economic slowdown and delay in US interest rate cuts have resulted …