There is an unmet demand for large offices in the city of Valencia, also for the flexible positions market, a trend that has been noticed for months, especially after the pandemic. The focus of the operators continues to be on the regional markets that are interested in Valencia, but also in Alicante, Malaga or Seville, locations that have registered a notable growth in the number of positions hired as well as in the contracting of more surface area by flexible operators.
It is one of the conclusions of the real estate company CBRE on the behavior of the flex office market in the first quarter of the year, with more than 6,000 positions reserved in these cities. Valencia (231) leads the hiring of positions, followed by Málaga (172) and Palma (106), while Seville and Alicante have around 50 positions hired.
In Valencia, with 1,160 Flex jobs and a stock of 11,600 m2, the average occupancy rises to 82%. Hiring in the first quarter was 231 positions, the highest figure at the regional level. The real estate consultancy highlights the expansion plans in the city by different operators, but points to an evident limitation in the supply of buildings for this use in the downtown area. According to CBRE, there is an existing unmet demand, especially from companies that require flexible spaces with attributes of quality, well-being and sustainability.
There are various projects underway. The Terminal space that will open in the Marina area will have coworking, in addition there are others already active, such as those managed by the companies Wayco (Cabanyal, Ruzafa and Abastos) or Vortex, which has two, one on the beach and another in the center, or the Innsomnia space, also in the Marina, to give some examples.
The Invest in València office, specialized in facilitating the landing of companies in the city, recognizes that the coworking option is growing in recent years in València because the possibilities are very varied, and the prices are determined by the location, the ecosystem of companies and the type of services provided by the space. In the guides that they provide to newcomer companies, they estimate these prices between 420 euros/month for a private office within the coworking, up to 90 euros/month for a fixed table or 70 euros/month for a flexible table in an open space environment. . There are about seventy.
Likewise, from the real estate sector they explain that flexible space operators demand large surfaces, open floor plans, in complete buildings and/or independent access, in central locations and with open spaces or terraces; "needs that are difficult to satisfy in markets like Valencia." And given this shortage, they add that "this activity is increasingly being developed in other areas, such as small buildings in the center and in new areas that are undergoing gentrification."
And although València is the one that is growing the most, Málaga is the Spanish city with the highest occupancy in the national territory (93%) and in the first quarter 172 Flex jobs were hired. Meanwhile, in Alicante an occupancy rate of 88% has been reached, with 310 positions equivalent to 3,100 m2. In this first period of the year, CBRE indicates that 54 flexible jobs have already been hired.
