How the Birmingham Office Market is Evolving

The commercial office market in Birmingham is evolving to reflect the growing investment and transformation of the city. As the historic centre of manufacturing and trade in the UK, Birmingham continues to embrace creativity and innovation. This combination is making it a destination for forward-thinking businesses.

An increasing number of professional services, financial organisations and technology companies have relocated to Birmingham as an alternative to London. Attracted by cost-effective space and new developments being built in the city are making it a highly sought-after location. With all this movement and investment comes the reaction from the property market, which has shaped some interesting trends over the recent years.

As the city has evolved, the projects we have delivered, and continue to work on, are redefining the way companies occupy their offices and the types of opportunity that come from not only building new but also refurbishing prominent properties within the Central Business District (CBD) and inner core of Birmingham. Through a combination of our own research and market intelligence, here are some of the trends and key information we’ve noticed in Birmingham’s office market.

Market Overview

Earlier this year, prime office space in Birmingham reached a high of £45 per sq ft which was a record at the time. Now we are seeing some of the commercial agents reporting top rents of £46 per sq ft which demonstrates how high demand has become for Grade A space in the city. The top priority for businesses remains the need for high-quality, well-serviced space in central Birmingham.

Birmingham is experiencing significant positive growth across all sectors. JLL reported earlier this year that Birmingham is one of the most popular new UK office destinations amongst financial firms leaving London.

There has also been a strong increase in activity for professional services and life sciences that have also brought new investment and demand for space into Birmingham. CoStar reports that a healthcare facility for the University of Birmingham took life-sciences take up to 361,000 sq ft this year, showing that this is one of the key sectors that’s continuing to grow in Birmingham.Knight Frank’s UK Cities Mid Year Review states that “professional services firms remain dominant, representing nearly half of all space leased.”

Birmingham is undoubtedly undergoing an exciting period of growth. To give us a broader context, we have to look at other benchmark data to give a true sense of what’s happening. Avison Young stated in their Big 9 report for Q2 2025 that “prime supply in Birmingham now sits at historically low levels” and that demand in Birmingham was down on the previous quarter and also below the 10-year average.

“Office demand in Birmingham fell over Q2 2025 to 150,370 sq ft, 23% down on the previous quarter and 54% below the 10 year average.”

Avison Young, Big Nine Q2 2025

These figures only tell part of the story as the real shift lies in how companies are rethinking their workspace strategies. The figures are, however, a great way to get a sense of activity and provide insight into the key developments. To complement this, we have compiled some of our own insights on the trends shaping the Birmingham office market.

Trends in the Birmingham Office Market

We have seen a purposeful change from many of our clients in the last 12 months which shows a different intent in how they’re looking at office space, or rather what they are looking for from their office space.

Overall, we are seeing a direct correlation between the demands of the companies looking for space and the next wave of commercial offices in Birmingham. Flexibility has remained as a key requirement but businesses want more from their property and that is creating a push towards great experiences and more unique buildings.

Workplace experience

The need for an office to deliver an experience is now perhaps the most sought-after requirement from our client base. The workplace has now evolved into a complex destination that has to fulfil so many duties and needs.

Investment into the wellbeing aspects of an office have become more important to businesses as the workplace culture now thrives on the ability to be flexible and on the whole be more conscious of our wellbeing. The types of facilities that enable this range from basic features like wellbeing suites or areas within an office all the way through to dedicated services that are offered to staff as a benefit such as free food, gym memberships or even access to massage therapists.

As all of these features and specialisms are being introduced into the office, the design of the space has to support them. That is where the role of the office, and intelligent office design, has really developed in recent years.

Refurbishing and upgrading space

One of the most compelling shifts we have seen in Birmingham is the decision to refurbish, reconfigure and upgrade existing properties rather than looking to relocate. Naturally there have been a number of businesses that have moved to new properties in this period but increasingly there is a drive towards refurbishment. Reports indicate that of the current available office space, “only 1.2% is new build Grade A” which shows there is not enough Grade A space available for companies to move into. Either companies are having to plan office moves years in advance in tandem with new buildings being constructed or undergo high-quality building refurbishments.

There are other incentives behind these refurbishments too, such as sustainability commitments, but with many organisations occupying some of the city’s Victorian buildings, there is now an increasing opportunity to renovate and upgrade buildings.

Some of our recent projects like the refurbishment at King Edward House on New Street and the new office floors at 10 Colmore Row in the Great Western Arcade are great examples of this market trend.

King Edward House

This project illustrates how heritage buildings can meet modern business needs. King Edward House is a landmark seven-storey building on New Street that was first built in 1936. Trying to reimagine a period property in the city, while also appealing to a more modern design, reflects a number of the current refurbishment projects and opportunities in Birmingham.

The project is just under 80,000 sq ft and will be a comprehensive refurbishment that will transform the office floors as well as introduce key amenities into the building. New additions like a gym, cycle facilities and showers will be going into the property and there will also be a new roof-terrace space. All of these elements will be key to enhancing wellbeing in the workplace but will also totally transform a heritage building filled with stunning architectural detail into a modern, multi-purpose workplace.

10 Colmore Row

Working in a property as exciting and unique as the Great Western Arcade is a fantastic opportunity and a great representation of how the Birmingham property market is shaping up. Repurposing retail space into modern workspace is a growing trend across the board but many of Birmingham’s most architecturally significant buildings were not originally designed as office spaces. Bringing workspace into a heritage building like this at 10 Colmore Row is a trend we expect to see more of in 2026.

This project requires a considered and careful approach as when you work in a building like this, it is important to celebrate the Victorian heritage and build upon the characteristics of the property, not replace them. On top of that, the listed status of the building required us to retain specific elements and not alter too many original details and finishes.

The works will include a partial refurbishment and remodelling to create self-contained office units on the first, second and third floor. The transformation will provide modern workspace within a heritage building in the middle of Birmingham’s CBD. This type of project is a demonstration of how high-quality, premium office space can be made available within a non-Grade A structure that was initially not intended as office space.

How Birmingham will continue to evolve

Birmingham has undergone a period of change while the commercial property market has had to adapt to new working patterns. There has been a steady investment in the city and companies are seeing Birmingham as an attractive location to set up key offices in the UK. As more organisations relocate here, Birmingham will continue to be recognised as a key business hub outside of London.

It is important that the workspaces we design respond to the new demands and requirements. Recent projects have highlighted how employees are actively looking for more purposeful office experiences and developers are responding with seeking out opportunities that provide greater flexibility and a good range of amenities.

The role of transformational refurbishments to properties like Colmore Row and King Edward House demonstrates the direction the city will likely have to go in. With prime office supply as low as it is, the requirement to restore and refurbish original buildings in the CBD and inner city core will only increase. This switch towards innovating and designing with sustainability in mind will open some unique and exciting opportunities within Birmingham’s dynamic market.

If you’re looking to explore your options on your office space in Birmingham, get in touch to speak with one of our experts.