London office market thaws as Blackrock gazumps

Private equity company Blackrock Investment Management's move to gazump Macquarie Group for the lease on a swish central London office marks a turn in the thawing occupational market and bodes well for developers. Blackrock's lease on the Drapers Gardens offices for 25 years at 49 pounds a square foot, with 36 months rent free, beat the 20-year lease at 43 pounds a sq ft, with four years' free rent, Macquarie had negotiated in late 2009.
Cushman & Wakefield's City of London office head, James Young, said the deal was "another point on the curve as the market moves more towards the landlord and away from the occupier." The London prime occupational market suffered during the global financial crisis with rents and occupancy levels falling, incentivising rising, and developments put on hold.