Office buildings to watch out for in Bangkok in the near term

New supply is expected to reach 950,500sqm over the next five years.

According to a Savills report, Bangkok offices market-wide experienced a mild recovery in the third quarter. While hybrid work practices still apply for some international firms, many tenants prefer conventional work activity on-site, similar to the pre-pandemic era, helping to support demand across the prime market. 

“The overall market still favours tenants given the volume of new completions providing more options, however we anticipate that rents will start to rise after two years as demand focused on higher quality and smart workplaces has begun to emerge,” the report added.

Here’s more from Savills:

Total Grade A office stock in Bangkok's CBD increased by around 1.77% QoQ during Q3. One of the new buildings completed included Silom Edge on Rama IV, a mixed-use project totaling 22,000 sq m by Frasers Property Thailand (FPT), offering office and retail space linked to the BTS and MRT transit systems. 

Right across from Silom Edge, Dusit Central Park is constructing an outstanding property with office space and residences which overlook Lumpini Park and offer a 7-Rai elevated roof park which is expected to complete in 2024. Along with One Bangkok, which will add more than 388,000 sq m to the market, new supply levels will reach 950,500 sq m over the next five years. 

Although some highly anticipated buildings have faced construction delays, leasing momentum across the market remains positive. Both One Bangkok and EmDistrict, Bangkok’s mega projects, are marketing aggressively and reaching out to potential anchor tenants for their buildings. While supply is forecast to rise steadily year on year, demand for Grade A offices in Bangkok’s CBD has been broadly stable and the gap between actual demand and market supply has risen since Q3/2021.

Despite this, average asking rents of Grade A offices in the CBD rose by 1.7% in Q3/2022 due to demand from companies looking for top-quality buildings with modern amenities in prime locations, which might be considered a ‘flight-to-quality’. Prime CBD rents meanwhile showed a slight change with growth of 0.47% YoY from THB980 per sq m to THB985 per sq m.