Decreased Number of Completed Sofia Offices for 2014

The number of the completed Sofia Offices for year 2014 has significantly decreased compared to the year before that. The share of the vacant office premises has fallen to 15 %, according to a report issued by MBL CBRE. In 2014 only 36 000 sq.m of office premises in Sofia have received permissions for usage. This is almost half the number of the completed office sq.m for 2013.

The decline was a result from the several years of crisis, when the demand for offices for rent has seriously reduced and the number of investments in the segment has been low. In the past two years however, there is a steady growth in demand for prime offices in Sofia. That is so, as many companies are now either expanding or entering the Sofia office market. These companies come mainly from the IT industry and the outsourcing sector.

According to the analysis of MBL CBRE, the office market in Sofia resulted in 88 000 sq.m of rented new office premises. The share of the vacant offices in 2014 has dropped with 33 000 sq.m and now they are approximately 250 000 sq.m. In other words, at the end of 2014, the available offices of class A and B in the capital Sofia were 15.4%.

Currently the most sought after are the business buildings in Sofia that come with open floor plan, high class equipment, quality construction and good location outside the central city areas. The driving force of the office market continues to be the large companies from the IT and the outsourcing sector. The rental levels of the Sofia offices from class A vary from 10.5 to 13.5 Euro per sq.m.