Decentralised office rents fall as firms relocate to CBD: JLL
As transfers continue to support demand, office rents in the CBD are expected to stay moderate, with JLL predicting full-year growth of 2% this year. Nevertheless, rents might pick up in 2025, in the middle of minimal supply. “No significant workplace completions are expected for the next 12 months, with the brand-new Shaw Tower only coming onstream in 2H2026,” notes Chua.
The redevelopment of 79 Anson Road, which can start following year, is expected to worsen supply restraints additionally, he adds.
Despite ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainties, CBD office rents edged up again in 2Q2025. Grade A gross effective rental fees climbed 0.7% q-o-q to $11.69 psf monthly, noting a 5th straight quarter of sub-1% growth, according to JLL.
A lot more companies might be obliged to transfer to the CBD due to “the current lack of a substantial lease gap in between CBD and decentralised workplaces”, states Dr Chua Yang Liang, JLL’s head of research study and consultancy for Southeast Asia. Currently, the average lease gap between investment-grade offices in the CBD and the decentralised sub-market stands at around 30% to 35%, that Chua claims is below the historic 50% to 60% tier.
Andrew Tangye, head of office leasing and advisory at JLL Singapore, says an expanding trend of “strategic recentralisation” and “quality-driven relocations” to offices in the CBD. “Many establishments in Singapore are developing toward higher-value services and enhanced company models, causing a migration of some workplace demand from decentralised areas to CBD facilities that much better accommodate their significantly sophisticated and client-oriented procedures,” he adds.
On the other hand, office leas in the decentralised sub-market recorded a downtrend in 2Q2025, its first fall in 4 years. Leas in the market slipped 0.8% q-o-q to $7.61 psf each month last quarter. “This decrease is attributed to ongoing rightsizing efforts and renters relocating to, or closer to, the CBD, stimulated by the increased opportunity of space,” JLL includes.
On the other hand, Tangye believes proprietors with vacant space are concentrating on improving occupancy and securing profiles ahead of 2026, when rents may begin increasing again before new supply goes into the market in 2028. He adds: “By executing targeted property enhancements, consisting of modernised lobbies and bathrooms, along with the repair and improvement of outdated workplace areas, homeowner are positioning themselves to bring in premium tenants and capitalise on the expected rental development opportunities.”
One instance is Audi Singapore, that most recently transferred its office spaces from Aperia on Kallang Avenue to Resources Square in the CBD. The shift coincided with the display room’s shift from Alexandra Road to 18 Cross Street, simply a short walk from Capital Square, claims Tangye.
