Only 18,000m2 of office space was signed between January and March 2019, according to CBRE.

“While this is low compared to recent first quarters in terms of volume and deal count, it follows a record fourth quarter and year of more than 250,000m2 of activity,” CBRE stated in a report this week.

Few large spaces were signed, the real estate firm reported: “Just two deals exceeded 1,000m2 in Q1.”

That said, the property pipeline was forecast to pick up in the coming months: “There is 190,000m2 of take-up already identified for 2019”, including the 18,000m2 already announced in the first quarter.

All told, CBRE tallied up only 156,000m2 of vacant office space in the grand duchy: “This is less than a year’s worth of take-up, indicating a shortage of available space.”

Vacancy rates vary by district. The figures was “around 1%” in the central business district, Kirchberg and airport area, while it was 6.3% in Esch-Belval and 8.1% in Gasperich. Rents were stable.

The investment market was “calm” during the first quarter, CBRE said, with four deals representing €273m in transactions. Much of that was centred around Deloitte’s new HQ in Cloche d’Or.

However, more deals are in the making and the total annual figure could approach €1bn by the end of December.

CBRE released its report, “The market calms in Q1 after a record year” (PDF), on 6 May.