According to the quarterly VTS Office Demand Index (VODI), there has been a significant increase in demand for office space in cities driven by the tech sector over the past 12 months. This trend suggests that tech companies are reevaluating their office needs and considering policies that may require employees to return to work, either part-time or full-time.
In contrast, markets with less reliance on the tech industry, such as Los Angeles and New York City, have seen a gradual return to pre-pandemic levels of demand for office space. However, this was not the case for Seattle, San Francisco and Boston – all known as major hubs for technology companies – until this past year.
On an annual basis, these three cities saw new demand for office space increase significantly: Seattle by 114.3%, Boston by 31.4%, and San Francisco by 25%. In comparison,the less-tech reliant markets of Chicago,Los Angeles,and New York City only experienced increases of14.9%,8.l%and3A% respectively.
Nick Romito,VTS CEO,stated,”Tech giants like Amazon,Salesforce,and Apple have begun implementing plans to bring employees back into physical offices after careful consideration.” He also noted that this shift is reflected in VODI data from early2020s.The trend shows no signs of slowing down,and it is expected that more companies will announce their plans regarding returning-to-office arrangements in upcoming quarters.This surge further solidifies these areas’ reputation as leading centers withinthe technology industry.
