Predictions for 2022: Brace yourself…

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After two years of unprecedented challenges faced by real estate, experts share their predictions for 2022.

Matt Crompton

Managing director, Muse Developments

I have three hopes: Covid abates; ‘levelling up’ happens; and inflation falls. My top three expectations are: the NHS will continue to work miracles; sustainability, carbon reduction and wellbeing will remain top of the agenda across all sectors, employers, investors and homeowners; and successful public-private partnerships will rely on strong balance sheets on both sides. I’m looking forward to the challenges and opportunities 2022 has in store!

Claire Dawe

Director, asset management, Stanhope

As the dominance of the full-time office has now ended, in 2022 the best asset managers must ask themselves: what will make employees want to go into their place of work and what can office spaces offer that homeworking cannot?

The office cannot rest on the laurels of decades past. For today’s multi-generational and agile workforce, we need to shift and elevate our thinking from business-to-business (B2B) to business-to-consumer (B2C), delivering experience and meaning to all our individual end users.

Employees of today want flexibility and choice. They want to see their values mirrored in their companies’ workspaces, as well as an emotionally and physically supportive space that is digitally connected and truly attractive in terms of sustainability and diversity.

We must raise the bar of service-led asset management and work harder to cultivate rich ecosystems that offer more connection, belonging and purpose. It’s not the end of the office, but a reimaging and repurposing of all that takes place within it.

Mark Quinn

Chief executive and chairman, Quinn Estates

We think 2022 will see a resurgence in regional and satellite offices and the continued embracing of flexible working. This will go hand in hand with improved communications infrastructure across business networks, enabling staff to work effectively while remote.

For residential, we see the continued constriction in the supply of new homes, as a result of the combination of the shortages and price increases in materials and the delays in the planning system that have hampered construction significantly in recent years. We see these constraints as underpinning the housing market in 2022.

The importance of leisure time will see the beginnings of a structural change in the leisure market, a direct response to the ‘staycation’ market growing and people increasingly wanting to make best use of their free time. Entrepreneurs will drive innovation and an overall improved offer in this sector.

The logistics and industrial sectors will continue to outperform with innovation across the delivery network, with last-mile services continuing to grow. We will also see continued investment in the use of electric vehicles in delivery fleets. We see the drive to improve air quality coming to the fore in the logistics sector.

Manish Chande

Senior partner, Clearbell Capital

While there is no room for complacency as we continue to bounce back from Covid-19,

I am optimistic for the sustained recovery of the property market. Pent-up demand among occupiers and investors remains, and this will deliver growth in a number of key areas.

Logistics will continue to benefit from ongoing structural changes, such as the shift to online shopping and the onshoring of supply chains. Big-box retail will also remain buoyant – this sector has proven resilient throughout the pandemic.

While questions remain about the future of the office, we expect occupier demand in major cities to remain strong. In the face of limited supply in many areas, this will provide upward pressure on rents for the best stock, particularly with strong ESG credentials.

The government’s levelling-up agenda and the resultant renewal of the urban landscape will generate opportunities to repurpose stock, including residential, healthcare and education.

Continue to part eight here

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