Irish investors snap up Cape Town’s CBD office space

OFFICE SPACE in the Cape Town CBD is at a premium thanks to the enormous take-up by private investors and the listed property sector over the last few years, according to the commercial brokers at Colliers International’s Cape Town office. Historically the listed funds only purchased properties in excess of R10 million while private investors normally invested below that amount. But according to research, private investors are now able to raise more money and buy bigger, more expensive properties resulting in a more competitive market. An analysis of Sapoa’s vacancy data indicates that there was an increase in the take-up of office space in the city centre in 2003, says Colliers. Foreign investors, especially Irish investors, are showing more and more interest in investing in the city centre. They appear to be particularly interested in redevelopments and the conversion of office buildings into residential apartments now that the Irish property boom cycle has tailed off. Real rentals are reported to have moved sideways over the last two quarters.