According to a recent report by real estate firm Savills, Singapore ranked fourth in terms of leasing activity for the legal sector among Asia Pacific cities during the first half of 2024. This was behind Shanghai, Beijing, and Hong Kong.
Ashley Swan, Executive Director of Commercial at Savills Singapore, notes that legal firms in Singapore have been fairly active in a stable leasing market. Some firms have taken up new premises and adopted a refreshed way of working to attract and retain talent.
Globally, Singapore ranked 11th with New York topping the list, leasing out 1.4 million square feet of space to legal firms in the first half of the year. This accounted for more than half of the 4.3 million square feet leased by the world’s 15 largest legal markets.
Savills also highlights that US cities dominated the global legal leasing activity, accounting for 69% of the total market. This is due to their market size and preference for lower occupancy density among US legal firms.
The report also notes that most legal practices maintained the same size of office space in the first half of 2024, with some expanding in select areas. In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, 40% of firms expanded their office space, particularly in Paris, Brussels, and London.
In China, domestic legal firms are moving to larger spaces, offsetting a decrease in physical footprints by some international firms. Chinese firms are also expanding into European markets, catering to clients based in China and working at lower fees than Western firms.
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Savills also observes a trend of legal firms looking to secondary cities for growth opportunities, attracted by competitively-priced legal talent. In the UK, many British law firms are turning to cities like Manchester, Birmingham, and Glasgow. Similarly, some firms are also exploring Brisbane and Melbourne to expand in Australia.