The sun isn’t setting on the office in the post-Covid-19 world, if Asia is any guide
- Several major Asian cities already benefit from mature decentralised business hubs, which provide modern buildings better suited to the post-Covid-19 leasing landscape
- The longer lockdowns and social restrictions remain, the clearer it is that most people miss office life
When the Covid-19 pandemic erupted at the beginning of last year, many chief executives of multinational companies warned that the apparent success of the mass experiment in homeworking, coupled with the urgent need to cut costs, would force companies to reduce their real estate footprints.
Concerns about the future of the office have been exacerbated by the virus-induced decampment of many urbanites to suburbs and small towns. Demand for houses in New York City’s adjacent counties has soared, with sales in Westchester and Fairfield (which is in the neighbouring state of Connecticut) surging last year.
A similar trend is evident in London. Several of the capital’s outer boroughs, notably Croydon and Richmond upon Thames, saw some of the sharpest rises in house prices in Britain last year.
Office workers’ aversion to using public transport – the absence of a long commute is widely seen as the main benefit of homeworking – is perceived as a major threat to cities, such as London, which rely heavily on mass transit.
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Coronavirus lockdowns around the world in 2020
Some industry experts believe the pandemic is the catalyst for a shift to suburban working. The so-called hub-and-spoke model – a city centre headquarters, supported by a network of smaller suburban offices closer to where employees live – is seen as a strategy better suited to managing the disruption wrought by Covid-19.