The suitability of premises for business use: an evaluation of supply/demand variations

Office buildings in the City of London accommodate a wide variety of tenant organisations whose business characteristics and property requirements differ. Physical design/quality attributes also differ between buildings and, therefore, either constrain or support specific business activities. The results of a survey carried out using a sample of investment properties and their tenants within the City illustrate the existence of these variations. In particular, the difference between tenant organizations’ perceived supply and demand for individual building design/quality factors is highlighted showing areas of general under‐performance. The owners of City of London office buildings, typically the financial institutions, are concerned with the functionality of their properties which influence the short‐ and long‐term returns of this particular type of asset. Information originating from the utilisation of building appraisal techniques is of considerable use within any property management decision‐making process and in particular the identification of potential problems associated with building obsolescence.