HCMC becomes APAC’s sixth most expensive office rental city
Xem Tiếng Việt 
Ho Chi Minh City has become the sixth most expensive city in Asia Pacific to lease premium office space, a new study by Knight Frank Vietnam has revealed.
In the second KFVN1000 Index – which measures how many m2 of Grade A office space US$1,000 leases per month in 21 cities around the world saw the southern metropolis finished behind only Hong Kong (7 m2), Singapore (11.4 m2), Seoul (13.7 m2), Sydney (14.3 m2) and Tokyo (15.7 m2) in the Asia-Pacific stakes.
US$1,000 rents 19.9 m2 in Ho Chi Minh City, which places it 12th in the world – just behind New York – in global office rents.
“The placing near the top of the regional leader board sees HCMC overtake Taipei and may well be the high watermark of the southern city’s office market,” said Mr Leo Nguyen, Knight Frank Vietnam’s Director of Occupier Strategy & Solutions, of the index’s findings.
“We will see a massive influx of new Grade A inventory entering the market between now and year’s end and are predicting rental decreases of between 10% and 20% over the next two years as the market moves from landlord-favourable to tenant-favourable.”
Hanoi, the fourth most affordable city in the 2022 Index, slid to fifth this year, with tenants receiving 37.6 m2 for their US$1,000 – up slightly from last year’s 36.2 m2. Despite the 3.8% increase in value Hanoi is offering compared to 2022, Manila’s increase of almost 10% moves it slightly above the Vietnamese capital in the affordability ladder.
Other cities recording notable changes include Shanghai – where the reopening of the economy and its significantly underutilised supply saw the Chinese commercial hub rise from just under 17 m2 a year ago to 26.6 m2 in the current index – a change of 58% y-o-y.
Further large y-o-y shifts were seen in Seoul, where US$1,000 leases you over 20% less than last year, Bangkok – which moved 15.4% in the same direction; and Jakarta, which went the other way, with your dollar now renting you 15.3% more than a year ago.
Globally, London’s West End nudged out Hong Kong to claim this year’s crown as the world’s most expensive rental destination, offering just 6.6 m2 per thousand dollars. The British capital’s City area came in third, with slightly over 11 m2 for the same outlay.
According to the index, Kuala Lumpur was once again the world’s most affordable city to rent premium office space, with US$1,000 typically securing tenants a spacious 72 m2 office. This sees the Malaysian capital offering 36% more real estate than the second most affordable city in the region – Jakarta.
