The Covid-19 Pandemic and Office Space Demand Dynamics

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic led to the mass adoption of remote working and other office market dynamics. As firms continue to adapt to the changes caused by the pandemic through various work patterns, the potential implications for the office market are unclear. Using data from Knight Frank’s (Y)OUR SPACE (2021) survey, this paper employs probit and multinomial models to examine the relationship between COVID-19 related remote working and changes to firms’ office space strategies. The study confirms that the pandemic has significantly influenced firms’ medium-term office space use strategies, and the results show that firms’ perception of their employees’ work-from-home experience has influenced their strategy review. The results specifically show that a positive WFH experience increases the likelihood that firms will reduce their total space quantity, reduce their density of occupation, and negotiate shorter leases in the medium term. We further observe that the pandemic is likely to have weaker effects on space quality than on space quantity, implying that economic factors remain core priorities in future office space use strategies, while social and environmental factors may remain secondary. These insights extend the literature beyond the economic determinants of office space demand to other social factors.

COVID-19 outcomes: exploring the footprints of the pandemic on the office sector in Johannesburg, South Africa

“…The insights from this study extend the literature and provide novel knowledge beyond an office market in the “global south.” Previous studies that examined some of these effects using empirical evidence have not provided sufficient insights into the user segments of the African markets, making it challenging to identify the major trends and trajectories. The findings also indicate that regardless of the pandemic, economic factors remained core considerations in firms’ space use adaptation strategies during the pandemic, and lease structural changes, though noticeable, may be less prominent in the South African context; these contrast to the dynamics observed in Oladiran et al (2023). Additionally, the findings indicate that remote working in the South African context primarily relates to working from home; third spaces (Saiz, 2020) are therefore less prominent in the South African context.…”

“…The changes to work practices, particularly after the pandemic outbreak, have left several footprints in the office market. These changes include reduced space requirements, shorter leases and increasing demand for higher space quality (Oladiran et al , 2023). In Johannesburg, office space demand decreased, and vacancy rates increased with oversupply in the market (JLL, 2020).…”

Enhancing Indoor Environmental Quality and Sustainability in Post-Pandemic Office Settings: A Study on Displacement Ventilation Feasibility

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on office density. Many employees and employers are reconsidering the use of office space [42][43][44][45]. There is a shift in workspace design, with more employers rapidly changing how they respond to health risks [44], while other factors, advances in technology, shifting demographics, and novel work structures, etc., all make architects alter their designs correspondingly.…”

Implementation Of Marketing Mix Strategies In Laundry Businesses During Social Distancing Policies; Case Study At Sangun Laundry, Serpong, South Tangerang, Indonesia

“…The implementation of the marketing mix strategy carried out by Sangun Laundry during the COVID-19 pandemic is interesting to investigate more deeply because First, the phenomenon of many businesses closing during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis (Chiang, 2022; Melo-Vega-Angeles & Chuquillanqui-Lichardo, 2023; Oladiran et al, 2023;Sozinova & Popkova, 2023). Second, there is a reality that sales data is still relatively stable and tends to increase during the Covid 19 period, as seen in the following data: Source: Sangun Laundry in 2022.…”